


Dreams Never End

by SlytherinPirate



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Brendol Hux's A+ Parenting, Han Solo's A+ Parenting, M/M, Minor Character Death, Murder, Slow Burn, benarmie, implied one-sided Hux/Poe, implied one-sided Phasma/Rey, technically suicide but not really, they're teenagers but they're still bad guys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-18
Updated: 2018-12-30
Packaged: 2019-09-22 04:01:38
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 23,572
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17052728
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SlytherinPirate/pseuds/SlytherinPirate
Summary: Ben Solo is an unhappy 16-year-old high school student who always seems to be disappointing everybody. His only escape is in his mind, where every night he dreams that he is a mystical space wizard named Kylo Ren who can use a superpower called The Force.One day, he wakes up and discovers that he can now use The Force in real life! And when he gets to school, a new student has transferred in that Ben immediately recognizes as the fearsome general from his dreams, General Hux.





	1. Blue Monday

**Author's Note:**

> This is my fic for the Kylux Big Bang 2018!!! Special thanks to niibeth on tumblr for being my amazing artist, and ellstra for being an awesome beta!  
> Link to artwork: http://niibeth.tumblr.com/post/181218751278/dreams-never-end

Kylo Ren stalked down the hallway of the _Finalizer,_ not even bothering to stop to open the door to the bridge, instead choosing to press the button to open it with the Force. The door _whoosh_ ed open and Kylo stepped onto the bridge to meet the timid faces of his officers. Every face on the bridge was turned towards him, and every face showed fear. Every face, except for one. General Hux kept on typing something on his datapad, having paid no mind to Kylo’s entrance.

 _Fine,_ he decided. If Hux wanted to ignore him, Kylo would ignore him back.

“Lieutenant Mitaka,” Kylo said, his voice distorted by the vocoder in the sleek black helmet he wore over his head.

“Yes, sir?” said the young lieutenant, his voice surprisingly steady considering how fearful the man looked.

“I would like a status report.”

“We are close to finding it, sir. We know that it is located somewhere in the Western Reaches, in the Inner Rim.”

“And the weapon?”

“Excuse me, Ren,” came a new voice. Kylo did not have to turn around to recognize the clipped accent, the stern voice of General Hux. “I believe I may be better suited to tell you all of thi--” Hux was cut off by Ren, who had stretched out one arm and shoved Hux backwards via the Force.

“I don’t have time for your petty attention seeking, General,” said Kylo, coldly, as Hux was regaining his footing. Under his mask, he smirked at the completely offended look Hux gave him. The General was about to retaliate when Lieutenant Mitaka interrupted them.

“Sirs,” he said, his eyes darting fearfully between the two of them and the screen in front of him. “We’ve just received an urgent message. The missing piece of the map is located on Jakku.” Hux straightened up at this, his quarrel with Ren seemingly forgotten for the time being.

“Prepare to jump to hyperspace,” he ordered. “We will find that map.”

  


It took Ben a moment or two to realize he had woken up, still immersed in his dream. When he did realize, however, he grabbed the journal he kept on his bedside table and immediately flipped to a blank page to write down everything he remembered from the dream. He remembered the General, but, like always, he couldn’t remember his name. He remembered how he had shoved the General against the wall, and how satisfying it felt. Most importantly, he had finally learned where the map to his missing uncle was.

After Ben finished writing, he flipped through his journal to look at past dreams. They were out of order, he had realized some time ago. Just the other night he had dreamt that he was a little boy, being taught magic and fighting at an academy run by his Uncle Luke. And last week, he had dreamt that he was older and fighting with his cousin Rey next to the corpse of the “Supreme Leader” of whatever organization his dream self was a part of.

In the dreams, he was Kylo Ren, a mystical space wizard who had a superpower called the Force, which let him read and control minds, lift rocks, and do a plethora of other things. In real life, though, he was just Ben Solo. A sixteen-year-old boy who got kicked out of his uncle’s martial arts academy and always seemed to be disappointing his parents. It was only fair, he supposed, as they always seemed to be disappointing him, too.

There suddenly came a knock on Ben’s bedroom door, and he looked up at the sound of his father’s voice.

“Kid, you up? I’m takin’ you to school today, so you better get ready. Don’t make me tell you again, you hear?”

“Yeah,” Ben said, loudly, to make sure his father would hear him. He listened to his father’s footsteps shuffling away and got up to get ready for the day. He grabbed one of his My Chemical Romance T-shirts and a pair of black skinny jeans and put them on before going to fix his hair. He frowned as he looked in the mirror while he combed it. He badly wanted to grow his hair out, but his mom wanted him to keep it short. Once he’s moved out and finally free of this hellhole of a house, he decided, he would grow it out. Not very long, maybe to his shoulders. Kylo Ren had shoulder-length hair, and Ben aspired to grow up to be exactly like his dream self: a badass with superpowers and beautiful hair. Just like his grandfather. Okay, well, his grandfather didn’t exactly have superpowers, but he had been a master sword fighter and a famous artist whose work showcased the deep conflicting feelings he felt in his soul, a constant battle between warmth and cold, between light and dark. He was the reason Ben had taken up art, too.

Ben finished getting ready and ran downstairs to meet his father, who was standing by the door with his arms crossed.

“I really don’t got all day, kid,” he said.

“Sorry,” replied Ben, not looking at his father as he grabbed his leather jacket and his backpack.

  


“We’re picking up your cousin,” Han said as they were pulling out of the driveway. Ben scowled. “Hey, don’t gimme that look. Rey’s a sweet kid. You could stand to take a leaf out of her book, y’know.” Ben rolled his eyes and Han sighed.

“Why do we have to pick her up?” Ben asked. He and Rey hadn’t gotten along since he was kicked out of her adopted dad’s academy, which they had both attended as kids.

“Your Uncle Luke’s out of town for a few days, and he’s the one who usually drives her. I’m just doing him a favor, is all.”

“Why can’t she take the bus?”

“She could, but I’m driving her instead because it’s a nice thing to do. Plus, the bus costs a whole lot of money that ain’t worth it, in my opinion.”

Ben huffed, crossing his arms, and looked out the window.

Soon they pulled up to Uncle Luke’s house and Rey got into the backseat of the car.

“Hey, Uncle Han,” she said cheerily. “And… hi, Ben,” she said, with much less enthusiasm. Ben didn’t answer her.

“What’s up, kid? How you been?” asked Han.

“I’ve been alright.”

“School’s good and everything? I bet you probably got better grades than this one,” he said, nudging Ben playfully. Ben flushed with anger and embarrassment and continued to stare out the window. How he wished he had those Force powers right about now…

Rey simply laughed, but didn’t say anything back to Han. Ben supposed this was probably to spare himself of more humiliation. They all knew that Ben didn’t have the best grades. It wasn’t like his grades were _that_ bad, they just weren’t as good as Rey’s. He could never be as good as Rey in anything, it seemed.

Rey spotted her best friend, Finn, as soon as they pulled up to the school, so she quickly said goodbye to Han and Ben before exiting the car and running to catch up with him. Ben, feeling a little bit salty about his own lack of friends, got out of the car more slowly.

“Ben,” Han called after him as he was swinging his backpack over his shoulder and beginning to walk towards the school. Ben turned back to him.

“What?” he asked, annoyed.

“You gotta stay late at school today,” Han said. “I’ll be out late tonight, and your mom doesn’t get off work until five.” Ben frowned. He hated it when his parents did this. It happened at least once a week, when nobody could pick him up from school so he had to just hang out by himself in the library until one of them could come and get him.

“Fine,” Ben said, now feeling even grumpier than before.

“You should join a club or something,” Han said. “It’d at least give you something to do.” And with that, he drove away. Ben stood and watched him go for a bit before sighing and turning to head into the school building.

 

Ben entered his first class of the day, which was unfortunately math, and his gaze immediately went to the student sitting towards the back of the classroom. A wave of both admiration and envy washed over him as he looked at Phasma. Phasma was probably the coolest kid in the whole school, in Ben’s opinion at least. She was so cool that nobody even knew her first name, she just went by her surname, Phasma (which was also _such_ a cool name, Ben thought). As far as Ben knew, approximately half the school was in love with her, and the other half wanted to _be_ her, and everybody was terrified of her. She had a commanding presence that Ben only ever had in his dreams as Kylo Ren. And to top it all off, Phasma’s grades were damn near perfect. That in itself went to show that Ben’s grades, while not being the best, weren’t too shabby, as they both ended up in pre-calculus, which was the advanced class for their grade.

Ben had the fortunate luck of sitting next to Phasma in this class, and he always made it a point to say hello, even if Phasma never said much back. To sum it up, Ben was a bit desperate for friends at this moment, and he figured that becoming friends with the coolest person in the school could be a good thing.

He sat down at his desk and gave Phasma a sly grin as their teacher, an anal retentive guy called Mr. Threepio, came down the aisle to collect homework. Ben turned to talk to Phasma as he got his worksheet out of his bag.

“So,” he said. “What’d you get for number three?” Phasma turned to look him dead in the eyes. She blew a bubble with the bubblegum in her mouth and popped it as she handed Mr. Threepio the homework, all while staring down Ben.

“Miss Phasma,” said Mr. Threepio. “I’m afraid chewing gum is not allowed in the classroom.” Phasma looked up at the anxiety-ridden man and raised an eyebrow, making no move to spit out her gum. Mr. Threepio shuffled the papers in his hands, nervously. “V-very well then, Miss Phasma,” he said, giving in to her intimidating stare, and turned around to collect Ben’s worksheet. Ben handed it over and sighed, turning his head away from Phasma and putting it down on his desk. It seemed that this was yet another day on which he would be making no friends. And with Ben’s luck, the day was sure to be a long one.


	2. Confusion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben wakes up feeling very different... Then at school, he sees a new, yet familiar face.

Kylo yelled in fury. Supreme Leader Snoke had humiliated him, in front of General Hux, of all people, by calling him a pathetic little boy who would never live up to the legacy of Darth Vader. Kylo had bowed his head at the time, his eyes stinging with tears of embarrassment, and as soon as the hologram of Snoke disappeared, he had stormed off to the nearest empty room on the ship to take out his anger.

He slashed at the control panels on the sides of the room, screaming in anger as sparks flew from the places where his lightsaber had made forceful contact.

“Ren!” came a yell from behind him. Panting heavily and shaking with fury, Kylo turned around to face Hux. 

“What.”

“Stop destroying my ship! You are wasting the Order’s precious resources!” 

Kylo stepped closer to Hux, trying to act menacing. Hux stood his ground, his eyes trained on Ren’s mask, where his eyes should be.

“You presume to give me orders?” Kylo asked. “May I remind you, General, that we are of equal rank.”

“Yes,” Hux replied. “And as someone of equal rank, I would have expected you to act less like a child.” At this, Kylo raised an arm. Hux’s eyes widened a bit and he started gasping for air. Kylo lifted Hux off of the ground by his neck with the Force, threatening to choke the life out of him as Hux grasped at the air around his neck, trying in vain to pry off invisible hands. Kylo looked into Hux’s eyes as he choked him and Hux looked straight back at him, still trying to appear strong despite his situation.  _ Such a beautiful green, _ Kylo thought suddenly. 

Before Hux could pass out, Kylo dropped him onto the floor. Hux fell onto his hands and knees, gasping loudly.

“Next time you want to insult me,” Kylo said. “Remember this moment. Remember how weak you are, and how strong I am.” Hux lifted his head to pierce Kylo with an icy glare. Kylo repressed a shudder and promptly left the room.

  
  


Ben woke up with a start. He felt as though a hurricane was storming throughout his whole body. He sat up and was immediately hit with a wave of vertigo. He closed his eyes and clutched at his head, willing the dizziness to go away. He didn’t feel feverish, which meant that his parents were probably going to make him go to school regardless of how he was feeling. 

As the dizziness subsided gradually, Ben remembered his dream. Mostly, he remembered the General’s eyes. He reached out a hand to grab his dream journal but before he could lean over to get it, he felt it already in his hand. Ben looked up from where he had been clutching his head. Sure enough, his dream journal was there, in his hand. But that was odd. Ben could have sworn that the journal had been on the far end of his bedside table, and he would have had to lean over to get it. He blinked a few times and shook his head. He was probably just feeling off from all the dizziness, and the fact that his body still felt like it was the epitome of a mosh pit.

Right, his pen. Ben looked over at the bedside table to find his pen, but it wasn’t there. He scanned the floor and eventually saw it, lying on the ground on the other side of the room. Without thinking, he extended an arm to it. The pen rose from the floor and flew over to land in Ben’s outstretched hand. Ben stared at his hand in confusion. Did that really just happen?

There was a knock on his door.

“Get up for school, kid!” It was Han.

“I’m up!” Ben yelled back. But his voice sounded far away, not his own. He was in shock. Still sitting on his bed, he moved his hand and opened the closet door from across the room, before summoning a Fall Out Boy T-shirt and a pair of jeans. They fell neatly onto the bed in front of where Ben was sitting. Ben could hardly believe it. He, Ben Solo, the sixteen-year-old boy who was always disappointing everybody, had superpowers. Ben Solo had the Force.

 

Ben lost track of time as he was playing around with his new powers, and he didn’t realize how much time had passed until his door swung open. Ben dropped the brush he had been holding with the Force in shock as his dad stormed into the room. 

“You better get your ass downstairs right now, Ben Chewbacca Solo! I don’t have to drive you to school, you know! I’m not your chauffeur!” Ben stepped back a few paces, bumping his back against the wall as Han yelled. 

“Sorry, I--” Ben started to say.

“I don’t wanna hear it!” said Han. “We’re going now, or not at all!” Ben abandoned the rest of his grooming routine and ran downstairs to hurriedly put on his shoes while Han walked past him and out the door to the car. Ben summoned his jacket and bag with the Force and followed him, his heart thumping and his mind reeling, still thinking about his new powers and the implications that came with them. What if his dreams were somehow real?

  
  


Ben arrived to pre-calculus late as usual, but this time Phasma wasn’t the first person to catch his eye. There was a new student, a boy, sitting at the desk in front of Phasma’s. He was right next to the window, the sun illuminating his golden orange hair, the light glinting off of his glasses. He was wearing a dark green sweater over what Ben recognized to be a Slytherin tie. The boy looked up as Ben entered, and Ben was hit with a wave of shock. He knew those eyes. Those eyes belonged to General–

“Hux,” Ben breathed, loudly enough that the class could hear it. Upon looking at the new boy’s face, he finally remembered the General’s name. The boy sat up a bit straighter, furrowing his brow, confused.

“Mister Solo, please sit down.” Ben blinked out of his trance and looked at Mr. Threepio. 

“Oh, r-right.” Ben shook his head and went to his desk, trying to process what was going on. First he wakes up and can suddenly use the Force, then he gets to class only to find that one of the characters from his dreams has now appeared in front of him. It was like his dreams were suddenly coming to life.

 

After class was over, the new boy came up to Ben’s desk and crossed his arms, looking at Ben suspiciously.

“How do you know my name?” he asked. Ben recognized his voice too. Everything was exactly the same as in his dream.

“What?” Ben asked, looking up at the boy.

“Hux. When you came in, you looked at me and said ‘Hux.’ How do you know my name?”

“O-oh.” Ben stalled for time, trying to think of a response as he put his things back in his backpack.

“Do I really look that much like my father?” Ben snapped his head up at this and was suddenly grateful that this boy, Hux, had given him an excuse to work with.

“Uh, yeah,” Ben said. Then, “Wait, your father?” Hux sighed.

“The new principal.”

“Principal…” Ben thought for a moment before remembering. He had heard that they were getting a new principal, Principal Brendol Hux. So this kid was his son… Ben stood up, noting that he was only a couple of inches taller than this Hux kid. He looked into his eyes again, those beautiful green eyes that he remembered from his dream, and decided that he had to know more. He had to befriend this Hux and see if he was connected in any other ways to his dreams.

“I’m Ben,” Ben said, extending his hand.

“Armitage,” the boy said, shaking it.

“Hey,” said a voice from behind Armitage. He turned around, and Ben looked over his shoulder to see Phasma, leaning against a desk. “You’re the Hux kid, right?” she asked. Ben didn’t remember if he had ever heard her speak before.

“Yes,” replied Armitage, cocking an eyebrow at her.

“I sit on the picnic tables outside for lunch,” Phasma said. “You should come find me. Here, what’s your next class? I’ll take you there.” Ben watched in astonishment as Armitage walked over to Phasma and showed her his schedule. As the two new buddies were walking out the door, Armitage looked back towards Ben, his expression one of curiosity. Ben’s hands were balled into fists as they left. He couldn’t believe that this kid could just show up and befriend  _ Phasma  _ right away, of all people, while Ben had been trying to become her friend for months! That definitely settled it, he decided. He had to befriend Armitage. Then, not only could he perhaps find out more about his dreams, but he also might be able to finally get close to Phasma, too.


	3. Restless

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hux has a rough run in with his father in the morning, then during the day he keeps having to deal with a very insistent Ben Solo.

General Hux stood with Kylo Ren in front of the makeshift throne belonging to the so-called “pirate king” they were to make a trade deal with. Usually, Hux went on diplomatic missions on his own, but due to the hostile nature of these pirates, Supreme Leader Snoke had decided to send his protege, Kylo Ren, along with him. Hux hadn’t worked with Ren before; the two of them had only met about a month previous, so Hux had initially resented the idea of him coming along. Upon entering the tense atmosphere of the throne room, however, he was suddenly glad to have such backup. After all, the pirates had requested that he and Ren come alone. That in itself was suspicious, which was why Hux hadn’t protested when Snoke had suggested to bring Ren along.

The two leaders of the First Order bowed in front of the pirate king, a weequay by the name of Wezz Lauderslag. Lauderslag regarded Hux and Ren carefully as they straightened back up. 

“Well,” said Lauderslag as he lounged on his throne. “General Hux and Kylo Ren. I’m honored that two of the most important members of the First Order would come to see me personally.”

“Your business is very important to us, sir,” replied Hux, formally.

“Now why should I,” said Lauderslag. “Deal with a terrorist organization that’s trying to pass itself off as an empire?” 

Hux bristled. How dare this loathsome pirate pass such a judgement on the Order like that!

“The First Order will bring stability to the galaxy that the New Republic has failed to supply,” Hux said. Though Ren was wearing a helmet, Hux could feel the other man’s eyes on him as he spoke. “You have advanced weaponry that the Order needs to fulfill this mission. We will offer you one billion credits for it.”

“The New Republic has placed a bounty on your heads, you know,” said Lauderslag, standing up. Hux narrowed his eyes. “The bounty is also one billion credits.” He paused, looking between Hux and Ren. “For each of you.”

What happened next, happened very fast.

Lauderslag pulled out his blaster, aimed it at Hux, and fired. At the same time, Kylo Ren stretched out one arm. The blaster shot froze in mid-air. It took a bit of self control for Hux to not gape at the sight. He had known that Ren was Force-sensitive, but he had never actually seen a Force-user in combat before. Ren sent the blaster shot back at Lauderslag and it hit him squarely in the chest. As Lauderslag crumpled to the ground, the rest of the pirates in the room ran at Hux and Ren. Hux heard Ren ignite his lightsaber behind him at the same time that he pulled out his blaster and started shooting.

 

Armitage woke up with a start, blasterfire still ringing in his ears. He sat up in bed and mulled over his dream for a bit while attempting to rub the sleep out of his eyes. He remembered that the pirate king had fired a shot at him, and the helmeted man had saved his life. At least, he was pretty positive it was a man, though it was quite hard to be sure. 

He shoved the covers off of him and got up to get ready for the day, choosing a silk lilac tie to go with his favorite blue Armani sweater before combing his hair. After he had finished his morning routine, Armitage grabbed his book bag from next to his desk and went downstairs. To his dismay, his father was in the kitchen, fixing himself some breakfast. Armitage tried to go about putting on his shoes as inconspicuously as possible so as to hopefully avoid interaction with his father. Usually, Brendol left the house early to get to his work as the new principal of Armitage’s high school, but it seemed the man had decided to get a late start this morning.

“Armitage,” said Brendol, stopping Armitage in his tracks as he had been about to leave the house.

“Yes, Father,” Armitage said, not looking at Brendol.

“I will make this clear now, before you have time to screw things up: one misstep, one bad remark from a teacher, and there will be severe consequences. I will not allow a worthless bastard to cause me embarrassment just because he shares my surname. Understood?”

“Yes, Father.” Armitage stared at the wall, unwilling to look into his father’s disapproving face and wanting desperately to leave. His heart quickened as he heard his father’s footsteps coming towards him and looked up just in time to be smacked across the face so hard that he fell to the floor, his glasses coming off and skidding across the tiles to land a few feet away.

“You will look at me when I am talking to you, boy,” Brendol sneered. Armitage looked up at his father, trying to keep his eyes from watering from the pain.

“Yes, father.”

“Now get out of my sight.” 

Armitage didn’t need to be told twice. He grabbed his glasses and shoved them back on before hurrying out the door to his Volvo. He slid into the driver’s seat and opened the glove compartment to get out the powdered concealer he kept there for this exact situation. He dabbed some on his face to hide the raw redness that had appeared on his cheek from his father’s hand before putting the makeup back into the glove compartment and starting the car. 

_ What a great start to the day, _ he thought, sarcastically.

 

Armitage found Phasma at lunch, sitting at her usual table underneath a large maple tree in the courtyard of their school. He sat down across from her, setting his lunchbox down on the table as she nodded her head towards him in acknowledgement of his presence. Armitage wasn’t entirely sure why this intimidating girl had taken a liking to him. As far as he could tell, nearly everyone in the school was terrified of her. Still, he supposed he should be glad to have been able to make a friend so quickly. 

“Why are you wearing makeup on your cheek?” Phasma asked immediately. Armitage’s hand flew to his face in shock and embarrassment.

“Is it that easy to tell?” he asked in a hushed voice. Phasma shrugged.

“Not really, but there were freckles on your face there yesterday and now there aren’t. I just made a logical assumption.” Armitage scowled at her perceptiveness. “So why are you wearing makeup?”

“It’s none of your concern,” Armitage said with a huff. Phasma raised her palms.

“Whatever. I was just curious. Oh, speaking of things I was curious about: what the hell kind of a name is Armitage?” Armitage’s cheeks colored.

“I don’t know, my father probably decided to pick the stupidest name he could find in order to humiliate me.”

“Why do you go by it if you hate it so much?” Phasma took a big bite of the apple she was holding and chewed it while scrutinizing Armitage. Armitage simply shrugged.

“What else would I go by?”

“Well,” said Phasma, putting her feet up on the table and leaning back against the tree. “I just go by my last name. I like it better than my first name.”

“So you’re saying I should just go by ‘Hux?’” Phasma nodded. “But that’s my father’s name.”

“So?” Armitage considered for a moment.

“Alright, I’ll try it out and see how I like it.” Phasma grinned at him. “What is your first name, if you don’t mind me asking?” Phasma’s expression darkened.

“I do mind, actually,” she said. Hux raised an eyebrow.

At that moment, another presence decided to disturb Hux and Phasma’s lunchtime.

“Hey, Armitage!” Ben Solo said cheerily as he slid into the seat next to Hux with his lunch tray. “And hi, Phasma.”

“It’s Hux, actually,” said Hux.

“What?”

“I’m going by Hux now, not Armitage.”

“Oh, alright cool. Hux.” Ben looked between Hux and Phasma. “Oh, I get it, you’re doing the same thing as Phasma. Nice. I dig it.”

“You know,” said Phasma, causing Ben’s attention to snap to her. Hux raised an eyebrow and looked between them. “I always wondered why you don’t go by your last name. You’ve got a pretty cool surname, Solo.”

 

Ben’s eyes widened and his cheeks colored.  _ Phasma  _ had said that  _ he  _ had a cool last name! Never mind that he hated the name that was so often associated with his father, Phasma thought it was cool! Although…

“Not as cool as Kylo Ren,” he muttered. Phasma raised her eyebrows.

“Kylo Ren?” she said, unimpressed. Hux’s brow furrowed.

“Where have I heard that name before?” he muttered. Ben shrugged.

“It’s just something I came up with in a dream.” He looked at Hux, who had sat up a little straighter, as if realizing something. Could it be…? But then Hux shook his head as if dismissing a thought and went back to eating his sandwich.

“Hey, wait a second,” said Phasma, suddenly. Ben and Hux looked up.

“What?” Ben asked. Phasma looked at him.

“Did I say you could sit with us?” Ben blinked.

“Uh…”

“Get out of here, Solo.” Phasma waved a hand in dismissal and took another bite of her apple. Ben frowned and got up, figuring he’d corner Hux some other time and try to talk to him about his dreams.

 

 

Ben walked into the library during his free period to see Hux, sitting at one of the tables with earbuds in, studying from a textbook. Perfect! They had the same free period. Smirking, Ben walked over to Hux’s table and sat down in the chair next to him. He took one of Hux’s earbuds out of his ear and put it in his own to see what kind of music the other boy listened to. He furrowed his brow as Hux looked up at him, startled and angry.

“What is this?” asked Ben. Hux grabbed the earbud back and pulled the other one out of his own ear before shoving them in his pocket.

“It’s Restless by New Order,” he said, irritated. “And what are you doing? You can’t just come up and take out someone’s earbud!”

“Quiet, Hux, this is a library.” If looks could kill, Ben would be dismembered and then decapitated. 

“What do you want?” Hux said in a hushed voice, still fuming.

“I just want to talk to you,” said Ben. 

“About what?” Ben took a deep breath before speaking.

“So I’ve been having these dreams…” Ben took note of Hux’s bewildered expression before continuing. “They’re set in outer space. Like, a galaxy far, far away. And I can use this superpower called the Force.” 

“You’re losing me,” said Hux, thoroughly confused.

“No wait, listen. You’re in them!” Hux blinked.

“So you’re trying to tell me… that you dream about me?” Ben could tell Hux was getting creeped out.

“No, no, it’s not like that. It’s why I recognized you on the first day we met! It’s because I already knew you in my dreams!” Hux gaped at Ben. 

“That… makes zero sense. Unless…” Ben’s eyebrows raised hopefully. “No,” said Hux, shaking his head. “It can’t be.”

“Can’t be what?” Ben asked.

“Never you mind,” said Hux, his cheeks coloring.

“No but Hux, I’m telling you! We’re connected, somehow! And I can actually use the Force in real life, too!” Ben could tell immediately by Hux’s nonplussed expression that any bit of convincing Hux that he had managed had just been erased. 

“That’s nonsense,” said Hux, annoyed.

“No, really--” Ben was interrupted by the bell ringing, signalling the end of the period.

“Great,” said Hux. “I was really hoping to finish this chapter during my free period.” Huffing, the redhead collected his books and got up to leave.

“Hux, wait!” said Ben, trying to think desperately of a way to convince Hux.

“Goodbye, Ben Solo,” Hux said, frowning as he left the library.

  
  


Ben was trying to formulate a plan as he walked to his last class of the day, AP U.S. History. This was another class he had with Hux, which gave him more opportunity to talk to him. Due to a stroke of luck, Ben’s desk was right next to Hux’s, in the back corner of the classroom. Hux was already there when Ben walked in, drumming his fingers on the desk out of boredom. Ben noticed a golden ring on Hux’s right ring finger, adorned with subtle but pretty multicolored jewels. Ben was taken aback by the soft accessory on such a hardened boy, momentarily distracted from his goal.

“What’s that?” he asked as he sat down, motioning to Hux’s ring. Hux looked up at Ben, then down to the ring, then away.

“It was my mother’s,” he said, simply. Ben sensed that Hux meant for that to be the end of that conversation and turned to face the front of the classroom as class began.

“Starting a new project today, we are,” said Mr. Yoda with a warm smile, leaning on the cane that he always had with him. “Group project, it is.” Ben grimaced. He hated group projects. Mr. Yoda explained that they were going to get into groups and debate which U.S. president was the best president of all time. He went around the room and assigned groups based on who was sitting near each other, which meant-- 

“Work together, you four will,” Mr. Yoda said, gesturing to Ben and the three people sitting nearest him. Lucky for Ben, this meant working with Hux! But unluckily… Ben turned to the two people sitting in front of him, who were both now turned around to face him and Hux. 

Poe Dameron, a pretty jock whom Ben had hated ever since they were kids, was smirking at him and Hux. And Rey, who was crossing her arms and glaring at Ben as if to say, ‘You better not mess this up for us.’ Poe turned to look right at Hux.

“You’re Hugs, right? ‘Sup,” he said. Hux turned bright red for some reason.

“It’s  _ Hux _ .”

“Whatever, Hugs.” At that moment, Mr. Yoda came around with a bowl with a few pieces of paper in it, detailing which U.S. president they would be defending. He offered it to Hux, who stuck his hand in and pulled out one of the slips. He opened it and smirked triumphantly. Obviously he had been hoping for whichever president was on the slip.  _ Yes,  _ Ben thought, hopefully.  _ That means it’ll be someone easy, like a Roosevelt. _

“Nixon,” said Hux with a smile. Ben, Poe, and Rey all groaned.

“We have to convince the class that  _ Nixon  _ was the greatest president?” said Rey, frowning. Hux shrugged.

“I rather like Nixon,” he said. Poe raised his eyebrows and looked over at Ben, who rolled his eyes.

“Of course you would,” Ben said. Hux looked at him, tilting his head slightly to the side.

“And why is that?”

“I mean, you’re a Slytherin.” 

Hux furrowed his brow. 

“How could you possibly know that?” he asked.

Ben shrugged.

“You wore a Slytherin tie yesterday,” he said. Hux blinked, clearly surprised that Ben had remembered.

“So I get that you like Nixon,” said Poe, interrupting Ben and Hux’s conversation. “But I don’t get why you’re so happy we have him for the project. I mean, Nixon’s probably the hardest president we could have gotten, out of the like, five possible choices.”

“I dunno,” said Rey, glancing over at the Reagan group sitting at the cluster of desks next to them.

“Besides,” said Hux, looking Poe in the eyes with a smirk. “I like a challenge.”

Poe grinned slyly. 

“I kinda like you, Hugs,” he said. Hux’s face reddened again.

At that moment, Mr. Yoda suddenly appeared next to their desks and pointed his cane at Ben. Everyone then looked at Ben, who blinked in surprise and confusion before Mr. Yoda spoke.

“Group leader, you are.”

Ben’s eyes widened. He heard Rey mutter “great” under her breath next to him, and he saw Hux’s and Poe’s slight grimaces. He frowned as Mr. Yoda walked away.

“Okay, uh,” he said, glancing around at his three classmates. “I guess I’ll… assign roles?”

  
  


After class, Ben tried to catch up with Hux as he was leaving the school.

“Hux, wait up!”

“Leave me alone, Ben!” Hux shook his head in anger and walked faster. Ben caught up with him as Hux rounded the corner of the school and started heading towards the parking lot. Ben noticed that nobody else had headed this way, and he and Hux were now alone.

“Hux, I just want to talk to you!” Hux stopped walking and rounded on Ben, who took a few steps back in surprise.

“What, you want to tell me about these weird dreams you’ve been having about me? About your so-called superpowers?” Hux spat.

“I _ can _ use the Force!” Ben yelled.

“Bullshit!” Hux yelled back.

“It’s the truth!”

“Oh yeah? Prove it.” In a fit of rage, Ben outstretched his arm. Hux’s eyes widened and he began gasping for breath. He clawed at his throat as Ben lifted him off the ground with the Force. As Hux’s face reddened, Ben realized what he was doing and quickly dropped Hux. Hux fell to the ground in a heap, panting. Ben regarded him warily, unsure of what Hux was going to do next. After a few moments, Hux looked up at Ben, his gaze icy.

“Teach me.”

 


	4. Shellshock

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben has an interesting dream involving Kylo Ren and General Hux. Then at school, Phasma gets called down to the principal's office. After school, Ben starts teaching Hux how to use the Force.

General Hux looked up from his datapad as Kylo Ren entered his quarters. He stood up as the masked Force-user approached his desk.

“What do you want, Ren?”

“You cannot just override my orders, Hux. I need that squadron on my next mission,” Kylo said, his voice distorted. Hux frowned.

“I don’t even know what your ‘mission’ is. I’m not sending out any troopers of mine without being able to give proper briefing.”

“Supreme Leader Snoke does not think it is necessary for you to know the objective on this mission.”

“If I don’t know what I’m sending my troopers into, I’m not sending them at all.” Hux crossed his arms, looking pointedly at Kylo. They glared at each other for a few moments before Kylo spoke.

“I will brief you on the mission,” he conceded. Hux raised an eyebrow. “But then you have to go on it with me.”

Hux sighed through his nose.

“Fine,” he said.

“Fine,” said Kylo. There was silence. Kylo made no move towards the door.

“So,” said Hux, finally. “What else are you here for?”

Kylo removed his helmet and dropped it on the floor with a _clunk_. Hux smirked a little, knowing what Kylo was about to do. Kylo moved closer to Hux and leaned in to capture his lips in a heated kiss. Hux reached up to tangle his fingers in Kylo’s hair. Kylo let out a low moan as Hux pulled, and backed him up against the wall.

“Are we really doing this again?” Hux asked, breathlessly.

“Shut up,” Kylo replied. Hux barely had time to huff in irritation before Kylo captured his lips again, his hands moving up to undo the clasps of the General’s uniform. He pushed the fabric off of Hux’s shoulders before running his hands over Hux’s chest. He stopped kissing Hux’s lips and moved lower to kiss and suck on his neck. He loved to mark Hux’s pale skin.

“We should-- ahh-- move to the bed,” said Hux. “And don’t Force-lift me there this time.”

“Fine,” said Kylo.

  


Ben awoke to the sound of gentle knocks on his door.

“Hun? I’m taking you to school today, we gotta leave in fifteen minutes,” said Leia through the door.

“Mmkay, Mom,” said Ben, still half asleep. Groggily, he sat up in bed. At that moment, he remembered his dream and his face immediately heated up. He, and Hux had been… Ben’s eyes widened and his heart rate sped up a bit just thinking about it. Now that he thought about it, Hux was– there wasn’t another word for it– adorable. And kind of hot. No, pretty damn hot. Ben shifted awkwardly as he felt an uncomfortable tightness in his briefs.

 _Fuck,_ Ben thought, putting his head in his hands. _Now I’ve got a stupid crush on Hux._

Did he have time for a shower? _No,_ he decided, miserably. He didn’t have time for a shower, or time to deal with his… problem. He supposed he would just have to think about something decidedly unsexy. Something like… Ben racked his brain for a bit before settling on picturing Mr. Yoda eating gravy.

The combination of the two gross-ish things seemed to work, thankfully. With a sigh of embarrassment and frustration, Ben reached for his phone to check what time it was. _Speaking of Hux..._

He had received a text from Hux about a half hour ago when he had still been asleep. Ben’s heart rate sped up again as he read the message.

_“Can we start with the teaching thing tonight? I don’t have anything else to do and I don’t want to be at home.”_

Ben’s mind raced with the thought of inviting Hux over. Shit, his room wasn’t clean! But he couldn’t pass up this opportunity. Before Hux could come over, however, he had to ask his parents if it was okay. Ben tried to remember the last time he had had a friend over, and he only vaguely remembered having some sort of little get-together at his house for members of his martial arts academy a few years back.

 

Ben got downstairs to find his mother in the dining room, checking something on her phone while she waited for Ben to get ready for school. His father was in the kitchen, separated only by a kitchen island, fixing himself his morning coffee.

“Hey,” Ben said as he entered the room. “Can I have a friend over tonight?”

Leia looked up in astonishment and Han almost spilled his coffee.

“You’re inviting a friend over?” said Leia, as though all of her dreams had come true. But then her smile faltered. “Oh, honey, I’ve got work tonight so I won’t be home. And your father--”

“I’ll call Chewie and cancel bowling night,” Han interrupted, smiling at Ben. “I’ll order us some pizza, sound good?” Ben grinned at his father.

“Thanks, Dad.”

“No problem, kid. I’m proud of you.” Han walked over to Ben to pat him on the back. Ben swelled with pride.

 

“So who’s this friend of yours?” asked Leia as she was driving Ben to school.

“His name is Hux,” Ben replied as he was typing on his phone, texting Hux that his parents said he could come over.

Leia’s brow furrowed.

“Hux… As in Brendol Hux?”

Ben looked up at her.

“Uh, yeah, his son. Armitage Hux. Why?”

“Nothing,” Leia said, shaking her head. Ben narrowed his eyes.

“That doesn’t sound like nothing.”

“It’s just…” Leia let out a small sigh. “I’ve met Brendol, and well, he isn’t a very nice man.”

Ben frowned at this, thinking about Hux’s text from earlier.

_“I don’t want to be at home.”_

Could that be because of his father, Brendol? Ben hadn’t yet had the misfortune to meet the new principal, and from the sound of it, he would be glad if it stayed that way.

  


Hux caught up to Ben in the hallway outside of their math classroom as Ben was about to go in.

“Ben, we need to talk.”

Ben looked around in surprise, and blinked when he saw Hux standing there, seeming very irritated for reasons unknown.

“About what?” Ben asked, warily.

“About you! You-- ugh.” Hux closed his eyes, steeling himself. “I’ve been-- and I want you to know that I _hate_ that this is happening, but I’ve been having these dreams…”

Ben’s eyes widened. Was Hux really saying what Ben thought he was saying?

“And in the dreams,” Hux continued, before sighing. “I’m in space. And you!” He pointed at Ben, suddenly angry again, which made Ben step back nervously. “You’re the man in the mask, aren’t you? You’re--” Hux groaned, as if realizing something. “Kylo Ren.”

To say the least, Ben was ecstatic. Hux had been having the same dreams as him! Or, if nothing else, dreams that existed in the same universe as his did.

“Hux,” he said, his face splitting into a grin. “We’ve been having the same dreams! How long have yours been going on?”

“A little while,” said Hux, grimacing.

“Did you have one last night?”

Hux nodded.

“What happened in it?” Ben asked, curious to see if they were truly having the exact same dreams, and momentarily forgetting what precisely had transpired in the dream that he had had last night.

Hux’s cheeks colored and he looked away.

“Erm, I think you were going on a mission, and you wanted a squadron, or… or something.”

Ben recalled the dream. He swallowed nervously as he remembered that was indeed what had happened in his dream before they started…

“Um,” said Ben before clearing his throat. “Did anything happen… after that?”

Hux’s face turned bright pink.

“No. N-nothing else that I remember.”

Suddenly, Ben recalled another aspect of the Force powers that he had in his dreams. One that he was rather good at, in fact. He wondered if he would be able to do it in this world, too.

Cautiously, Ben reached out with his mind. He found, with wonder, that the act came naturally to him. He found Hux’s mind with his own, and it was as if he was opening a door to see the inside of Hux’s mind. What he saw made him turn red and start breathing a bit heavily. There, right in Hux’s mind, was the exact same make-out scene that he had seen in his dream last night, only from Hux’s point of view. So he and Hux had really had the exact same dream…

“What-- What are you doing?”

Hux’s voice brought Ben back to reality. He looked at Hux, who had his brow furrowed and was looking at Ben in confusion.

“What was that? What did you just do? I felt something,” Hux said.

“It’s uh, just…” Ben didn’t know how to make an excuse for this one. “It’s another thing I can do with the Force.”

Hux seemed to more or less put two and two together, for his eyes widened and his blush deepened.

At that moment, the bell rang.

“Shit,” said Hux. “We’re late!”

The two of them hurried into the classroom and took their seats. Mr. Threepio seemed to be running late as well, for he wasn’t in the classroom yet. Phasma looked between them as they sat down.

“What were you two talking about for so long?”

The two boys looked at her.

“What?” Ben asked.

“I passed by you on my way to class. Looked like an important conversation.” She raised an eyebrow.

“Never you mind,” said Hux. Phasma raised her palms as if to say ‘whatever.’ “That reminds me, Phasma, I wanted to ask you.” Phasma looked at Hux, curiously. “Can Ben start sitting with us at lunch?”

Ben perked up at this and looked eagerly at Phasma, waiting for her reaction. After a long pause, Phasma spoke.

“Really?” she asked, incredulously. Ben tried not to be too offended by her sarcastic tone.

Hux nodded and Phasma shrugged.

“Fine. On one condition.” She looked at Ben. “Tell me how to get with your cousin, she’s hot.”

Ben was flabbergasted. This was a completely unexpected turn of events.

“Rey?” he asked, shocked.

“Yeah,” said Phasma. “She’s on the lacrosse team with me. She’s cute and nice and stuff. How do I score a date?”

“Um, I dunno,” said Ben. “We don’t really talk… And besides, I think she likes Finn, maybe...”

“Finn?” asked Phasma. “No, I think he’s like, a thing with Poe Dameron.”

“Poe Dameron’s not single?” asked Hux, suddenly.

Phasma and Ben both turned to look at him. There was silence for a moment.

“Why do you care?” asked Phasma, her eyes narrowing. Hux blushed.

“Never you mind.”

“Is that your response to everything?” Ben asked. Hux shot him an icy glare.

At that moment, the three of them had to shut up because Mr. Threepio had entered the room and started class, but not before apologizing profusely for being so tardy. Ben was amused to hear that Mr. Threepio’s husband had started a fire in their kitchen that morning. From everything that Mr. Threepio had said about his husband, Artoo, Ben kind of wanted to meet the guy.

Halfway through the class, a student came to the room with a note and handed it to Mr. Threepio. He read it before looking back up.

“Miss Phasma,” he said. “It seems that the principal wants to meet with you.”

Hux perked up, and looked at Phasma, suspicion clear on his face. Phasma leaned over to whisper to him.

“What does your father want with me?”

“No clue,” said Hux, looking worried. Frowning, Phasma stood up, walked to the front of the room, took the note from Mr. Threepio, and walked out of the classroom.

 

At lunchtime, Hux and Ben walked out into the courtyard and were surprised to see Phasma’s usual table empty.

“Where is she?” asked Ben. Hux frowned, worried.

“I know where she might be, come on.” He tugged on Ben’s sleeve and led him back inside. Ben followed as Hux walked out of the building through one of the back entrances, and turned a corner. Sure enough, there was Phasma, smoking a cigarette and pacing. She looked up at the sound of their approaching.

“Shit,” she muttered before turning her back to them.

“What happened?” asked Hux, walking towards her. “What did my father say to you?”

“He--” She looked up at Ben, who had approached her with Hux, as if she didn’t want him to be part of the conversation. Ben got the memo and stepped back to a respectful distance, though he could still hear everything they were saying.

Phasma took a deep breath before looking at Hux and continuing to speak.

“He wanted me to… to…” She leaned in to whisper something to Hux that Ben couldn’t hear. Hux gasped in shock and anger.

“But, you didn’t, right?” he asked.

“Of course I didn’t!” Phasma said, angrily. “I just barged out of his office!” She walked over to the wall and sunk down into a sitting position, looking defeated. “And now I don’t know what he’s going to do…”

Hux walked over and suddenly banged his head against the wall, squeezing his eyes shut.

“This is all my fault,” he said, sounding devastated. “He always does this…”

“What do you mean?” Phasma asked. Hux turned to look at her.

“I’m… not really allowed to have friends.”

“What? Why?” Ben asked, astonished.

“He doesn’t think I deserve it,” Hux explained, looking at Ben now, his voice low and sullen. “And if I’m not spending all of my time studying or working, he gets… angry.”

Ben saw Hux unconsciously reach a hand up to his side and wince a bit in pain.

Hux moved his gaze back over to Phasma, his eyes conveying a look of pure misery.

“Phasma, I’m so sorry…”

Phasma stood up and dropped her cigarette to the ground before stepping on it. She wordlessly walked over to Hux and put her arms around him. Hux didn’t seem to know what to do. After a moment of just awkwardly standing there while Phasma hugged him, he put his arms around her, leaning in to her touch.

Ben watched from the sidelines, his heart aching for Hux. He longed to put his arms around the other boy and comfort him just like Phasma was doing, but somehow he doubted that Hux would be as receptive to him. He couldn’t bear the thought of his newfound crush having to deal with such a clearly horrible person. Ben had thought his own father was bad, but he was forced to reevaluate it now.

Hux pulled out of the hug and looked at the ground.

“In light of this,” he said. “I understand, and actually it would probably be smart, if you both no longer want to associate with me.”

“That’s ridiculous, Hux!” Ben interjected. Hux looked up at him, a bit taken aback at Ben’s determination. “Of course we still want to be friends with you! Right Phasma?” He and Hux both turned to look at her, Hux seeming wary of her answer.

“I’m not scared of your father,” Phasma said, looking at Hux. “Let him do his worst.”

  


The bell rang, signifying the end of the school day, and Hux and Ben started to gather up their books.

“So when did you want to come over?” Ben asked. Hux looked up at him.

“I figured… now? If that’s okay.”

“My ride isn’t getting here for another half hour, though,” Ben said, frowning. Hux shrugged.

“I’ve got a car.” Ben perked up at this.

“Really? That’s so cool,” he said. Hux’s cheeks colored slightly and he smiled.

“Yes, well, I can drive us to your place, if it’s alright,” he said, standing up. Ben nodded and stood up with him.

“Uh, yeah, that sounds great!”

  


They entered Hux’s car and Hux plugged his phone in to the AUX cord. As music started to play, Ben furrowed his brow.

“Is this that… New Order, or something, again?” he asked. Hux frowned as he started to drive.

“I like it,” he said, defensively, before huffing in irritation. “Fine, what music do _you_ listen to, then?” Ben shrugged.

“Oh, you know… MCR, Panic! At The Disco, Fall Out Boy…” Hux rolled his eyes.

“Of course you do. Why did I even ask?”

“What’s wrong with MCR?” Ben asked, feeling a bit offended.

“Listen, Ben,” said Hux with a sigh. “If we’re going to be friends, you need to have a bit of a broader taste in music.” Reaching a stoplight, Hux picked up his phone and scrolled for a bit before clicking on something. The music changed and Ben listened.

“What is this?” he asked, listening intently. “I kinda like it.”

“Lullaby by The Cure,” Hux replied as he drove. “I thought you might like The Cure.” Ben started nodding along to the music. Continuing to nod, he took out his phone and searched the song up on Spotify before saving it to his playlist. Hux glanced at him as he did this to see what he was doing and smirked slightly.

 

Han was sitting in the living room on the couch by the door when Ben and Hux got home. He stood up as they entered, smiling.

“You’re Hux, right?” he asked, coming over to them. “I’m Ben’s father.” He extended his hand to Hux, who took it and shook.

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Solo,” Hux said.

“‘Mr. Solo?’” Han said, bemused. “I like this guy, Ben.” He grinned. Hux smiled, sheepishly.

“We’re probably gonna go down to the basement,” Ben said, gesturing to a door across the room.

“Do you guys want some drinks first? I got some orange soda for you, I know it’s your favorite, Ben. And hey--” He turned back to Hux. “It’ll go with your hair, kid.” Hux’s cheeks colored.

“Yeah, I’ll have some,” Ben said with a small smile. He turned to Hux. “Do you want some orange soda, too?” Hux gave a curt nod. Ben made to move towards the kitchen before Han stopped him.

“I’ll get it, Ben. You guys head on downstairs, I’ll bring you your drinks in a jiff.”

“Thanks, Dad,” Ben said before leading Hux across the room and then down into the basement.

Once they got downstairs, Ben sat on the floor in the middle of the room. Hux smoothed his trousers before awkwardly sitting down across from him.

“I’m assuming your parents don’t know about your… powers?” Hux asked. Ben shook his head.

“That means we can’t start just yet,” he said. “We gotta wait until my dad brings us drinks first.”

“Your dad seems nice.” Ben merely shrugged at this. He couldn’t complain about his dad to Hux. Not now when he knew a bit of what Hux’s own dad was like.

“Hey, so,” Ben began, feeling awkward. “I saw you clutch your side and wince earlier… Are you okay?” Hux’s face fell considerably.

“I’m fine,” he said, darkly.

“Is there anything I can do to help?”

“I said I’m fine.” Hux glared at Ben, who just looked at him sadly. “Don’t give me that look, Ben, I don’t need your pity.”

At that moment, the basement door opened and Han brought down their soda. He handed a cup each to Ben and Hux.

“Alright, let me know when you guys get hungry and I’ll order some pizza. Sound good?” Hux and Ben both looked up at Han and nodded. Han grinned and clapped his hands together. “Great! I’ll be right upstairs hanging out with Chewie, so just let me know if you guys need anything.”

“Thanks,” Ben said as Han retreated upstairs.

“Chewie?” Hux asked before taking a small sip of his soda.

“He’s my dad’s best friend,” Ben explained. “He’s, uh, kinda weird. He’s super hairy and he doesn’t speak English. I mean, he understands English, he just doesn’t speak in it.” Hux raised an eyebrow, amused.

“So, if he doesn’t speak English, what does he speak?” he asked. Ben furrowed his brow. Now that he thought about it, he didn’t really know what language Chewbacca spoke.

“I think… Russian, maybe?” he said with a shrug. Hux snorted.

“He sounds… odd.”

“Yeah,” Ben agreed with a breathy laugh. There were a few moments of silence in which Hux and Ben sipped their drinks before it was broken by Hux.

“So,” he said. “The Force?”

“Yeah…” Ben thought about how he might be able to teach Hux. From what he remembered, General Hux in his dreams didn’t use the Force. Ben wondered if he would even be able to teach him at all. “When I use the Force,” he said, thoughtfully. “I feel like, it’s got a lot to do with my emotions. Like, when I woke up and could use it for the first time, it was like I was going through an emotional tidal wave. The first thing I did with it was summon my journal and my pen. So…” He looked around the room, as if searching for something. Then he looked down at his cup. He quickly drained the rest of the soda before putting the cup down between him and Hux. “Try to lift this up.”

“Just… lift it up?” Hux asked. He reached forward and grabbed the cup, holding it up. Ben frowned, annoyed.

“With your mind, Hux.”

Hux rolled his eyes and placed the cup back down.

“So do I just… reach out?” he asked, looking between Ben and the cup. Ben nodded and Hux extended a hand so that it was near the cup, but not touching it. He curved his hand into a grabbing position but made no move to grab the cup.

“Now,” said Ben, scooting backwards a bit to give Hux more room. “Reach down deep inside you with your emotions, and lift the cup.”

Hux concentrated on the cup, his eyes shining with determination. His hand shook slightly with the effort of using it as a catalyst to perform telekinesis. After a minute had passed in which nothing had happened, Hux dropped his hand in frustration.

“It’s not working,” he said, frowning at Ben.

“I mean,” Ben began. “In the dreams, I’ve never seen you use the Force, so--”

“I _need_ to be able to use it,” said Hux, absolutely determined. “You can, so why can’t I?”

“I don’t know,” Ben said. He had a sudden idea. A stupid idea, really, but maybe he ought to try it anyways. Just to make sure that the fact that Hux couldn’t lift the cup wasn’t the _cup’s_ fault instead of Hux’s, he extended a hand to it. Easily, it lifted a few inches off of the ground. Ben sighed and Hux scowled.

“Are you trying to rub it in?” he asked. Ben shook his head, vehemently.

“No, I just--” At that moment, Hux’s phone buzzed in his pocket and he reached in to take it out. He stared at the text he had been sent for a few moments before cursing and standing up.

“Hux?” Ben asked. Hux put a hand to his head and turned to face the wall. Clearly, whatever text he had been sent had upset him greatly. Ben stood up as well and walked over to him. “Hux, what’s wrong?”

“He. He kicked Phasma off of the lacrosse team,” he said, his voice shaking with anger. “Apparently, he said that she made the other girls on the team uncomfortable, because she’s a lesbian.” He suddenly turned around and punched the wall, not hard enough to bleed but definitely enough to bruise. “It’s utter bullshit!” he yelled. “And all because she made the unfortunate decision to be friends with me! He’s a monster! And I hate him, oh God I hate him _so much_!”

Ben, while upset by Hux’s clear distress, had a sudden idea. His face hardened into a look of determination.

“Use your anger, Hux!” he yelled. Hux turned to look at him, angry tears brimming in his eyes. Ben’s gaze locked onto his. “Use your anger! Lift the cup!”

Hux whipped back around to the cup and extended his arm in fury. He thought about everything his father had done to him, every despicable thing he had done to any and all friends he had ever made. His whole arm shook as he concentrated every angry emotion he had at the cup. Suddenly, the cup exploded, bits and pieces of it flying in every direction around the room. Hux panted, looking in shock at the place where the cup used to be.

“Did… Did I do that?” he asked, hardly daring to believe. He turned to look at Ben, his eyes wide, only to see a positively euphoric expression on Ben’s face.

“Hux, you… You did it!” Ben exclaimed. Hux let out a small laugh.

“I did it,” Hux said. A grin spread across his face then, and there was a fire in his eyes that, to Ben, looked like the fire of exploding planets, planets that had been blown up into bits and pieces, just like the cup.

 


	5. World In Motion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A few months pass from when Ben first became friends with Hux and Phasma. Then, Ben gets called down to the principal's office.

_ October _

 

It had been a month since Ben had started to teach Hux how to use the Force, and Hux had been making marvelous progress. Ben thought they were ready to move on to a new aspect of the Force: mind manipulation. Assuming that Hux would rather enjoy this skill, Ben brought it up in the car on the way to school one morning.

“Mind manipulation…” Hux considered, his eyes lighting up at the phrase as he drove. “You mean like controlling people?”

“Yeah, kinda like making like, a really strong suggestion that they really want to follow. So yeah, it’s kinda like controlling them,” Ben explained. Hux’s mouth was agape; Ben could tell that he was barely containing his excitement.

“Ben,” Hux said. “Why on earth didn’t you tell me this was a thing we could do with the Force before now?” Ben furrowed his brow.

“I thought you knew,” he said. “I mean, we have the same dreams.”

“We only have the same dreams when they involve each other. Whenever you or Kylo Ren or whatever isn’t around in my dreams, I’m doing something else. Like, last night, what was your dream about?” 

Ben’s expression darkened.

“I dreamed that my uncle tried to kill me,” he said, quietly. Hux glanced over at him, his face a mixture of pity and concern.

“Well that sucks, Ben, but do you see my point? Last night I dreamt that I met the Supreme Leader for the first time. You weren’t there.”

Ben shrugged, the memory of his dream leaving a sour taste in his mouth.

 

_ November _

 

“Hey Hux… Do you want to come inside?” Ben blushed as he said it, his heart rate speeding up in anticipation of Hux’s answer.

Up until this point, the only times he had ever actually hung out with Hux were either at school, or when he was teaching Hux the Force. They had never hung out just for the sake of hanging out before.

Hux blinked and looked at Ben from the driver’s side of his car. He had been prepared to just drop Ben off at home after school like usual, but…

“We don’t usually have Force lessons on Thursdays,” Hux said, tilting his head slightly to the side. Ben shrugged.

“Yeah I know but… I dunno, it might be fun to just hang out? And I know you don’t really like being at your house, so maybe you can stay at my house?” Ben looked down at his lap, his face heating up more. He was certain that he currently sounded like an idiot.

“Sure,” came Hux’s reply. Ben looked up to see Hux smiling softly at him. “We can bounce ideas off of each other for that APUSH essay.”

Ben grinned as Hux turned the car off and took the key out of the ignition. He was actually going to hang out! With Hux! As they got out of the car, Ben looked over at Hux and his heart fluttered. His crush on the other boy had only worsened over the last few months, and nowadays Ben found himself staring at Hux more often than not. He was sure Hux had to have noticed by now, but if he had, he hadn’t said anything or made any indication of knowing Ben’s feelings for him.

Ben’s mother was in the living room, working with her laptop on the couch when Ben and Hux came inside. Leia got up and beamed at them as they walked in. 

“Armitage, I didn’t know you were coming over!” she said. “I would have gotten more orange soda.”

Hux smiled politely back at her.

“It’s quite alright, Mrs. Organa,” he said. 

“Well, I’ll just get you boys some snacks, then,” she said warmly. “I assume you’ll be in the basement again?”

Ben shrugged.

“If we’re doing homework it might be easier to sit at the dining room table,” he said, looking at Hux. Hux nodded.

“Sounds fine to me.”

“I’ll be right back then,” said Leia before heading to the kitchen.

 

_ December _

 

Possibly the biggest shock for Ben was when Phasma asked if she could join Hux and Ben after school sometime. She started going home with them every Thursday and the three of them would do homework together (among other things, like video games and the occasional Uno or Monopoly). Even the weekends nowadays oftentimes found Phasma and Hux lounging around at the Solo residence.

“So it’s obvious as to why we never go to Hux’s place,” Ben said one Saturday as he, Hux and Phasma were hanging around in the living room. “But how come we never go to your place? It’s always my house.” He looked pointedly at Phasma. Phasma looked between the two boys on the couch who were now both staring at her, and sighed as she reclined in Ben’s father’s armchair.

“It’s real simple, Solo,” she said. “Nobody knows where I live and I intend to keep it that way.”

Hux rolled his eyes.

“Edgy,” he muttered under his breath. Phasma narrowed her eyes.

“What did you just call me?”

“I called you edgy,” Hux said, raising an eyebrow challengingly at her. Phasma, in turn, raised both her eyebrows in disbelief.

“Edgy?” she asked, incredulously. “Hux, the three of us are probably the edgiest people in the whole school. You have no right to talk. Especially considering your boyfriend, here–” She gestured to Ben as both Ben and Hux blushed up to their ears.

“He’s not my--”

“We’re not--”

“Yeah, yeah, sure, whatever.” Phasma waved a hand dismissively. 

 

_ January _

 

Ben and Hux were in the basement, sitting cross-legged next to each other and practicing their telepathy powers when Ben had a sudden idea.

“Hux!” Ben said, loudly.

_ Don’t actually talk,  _ Hux thought at him.  _ We’re supposed to be practicing thinking things at each other. Projecting thoughts, and all that? _

“This is important, though,” Ben whined. Hux sighed and rolled his eyes. He moved so he was sitting across from Ben and waved a hand in front of his face, looking meaningfully into his eyes.

“You want to shut up,” Hux said, staring deeply at Ben. Ben stared back, his eyes glazing over slightly.

“I want to shut up,” Ben repeated. Hux smirked. This specific aspect of the Force was one that he was particularly skilled at, more so than Ben, even: mind manipulation. The power of persuasion.

_ There,  _ thought Hux.  _ That’s better. _

_ That was mean,  _ Ben thought at him.  _ Asshole. _

This only made Hux’s smirk widen. Ben sighed through his nose.

_ I had something important to say,  _ Ben thought. 

_ If it’s so important, you can surely manage to think it instead,  _ thought Hux.

_ Fine.  _ Ben crossed his arms.  _ I think we should try to remember each other in our dreams. _

Hux furrowed his brow at Ben, confused.

_ What? _

_ When we dream, we should try to remember our lives here. Then maybe we can meet each other in our dreams! _

_ How on earth would we do that? _

_ I dunno… Maybe meditate a lot before going to sleep? _

Hux pondered this for a bit.

_ It would certainly be intriguing. Alright, we’ll give it a try. _

Ben grinned and Hux smiled back.

“Okay,” said Hux, out loud. “I want to levitate shit.”

Feeling that Hux’s persuasion on him had broken, Ben clapped his hands together.

“Fuck yeah.”

 

Ben and Hux had taken to playing a game in which one of them levitated a chair and then, using the Force,  tossed it to the other, who would levitate it as well and then toss it back. They were playing this game and doing tricks like spinning the chair around in the air and such, when Hux decided to ask Ben a rather peculiar question.

“Hey Ben… Do you have a… crush, on Phasma?” he asked. Ben nearly dropped the chair in surprise.

“Uh, to be honest I kind of did in freshman year. But now? Nah.” He frowned. “Why… do  _ you?” _ Hux raised an eyebrow and shook his head.

“She’s… not really my type.” Before Ben could try to figure out what Hux meant by ‘not his type,’ the door to the basement swung open. Hux, who was in full view of the door, didn’t have time to drop the chair before the person who had opened it saw what he was doing. 

Phasma came down the stairs, very confused, as the chair clattered to the floor.

“Hey, how’d you get in?” Ben asked, crossing his arms.

“Your mum let me in,” Phasma said, absently, staring at Hux. “That chair… You were not touching that chair. It was floating off the ground. What…”

Hux looked at Phasma, then at Ben, then back at Phasma, before deciding on the truth. He didn’t want to lie to his best friend anymore.

“We…” Hux began, gesturing between himself and Ben. “We… kind of have… superpowers?”

If Phasma could raise her eyebrows any higher, they’d be off of her face.

“Show me,” she said, looking between Hux and Ben. Hux looked over at Ben, expectantly, so Ben reached an arm out towards the chair. Slowly, it lifted off of the ground. Phasma gaped at it in astonishment. 

“So,” she said, blinking several times. “You both have… telekinesis?”

“Among other things, yeah,” said Ben. Phasma began nodding, clearly trying to process this news.

“Cool cool cool cool cool,” she said, still nodding. “No doubt, no doubt.”

“So why are you here, anyway?” Ben asked. Phasma shrugged.

“I got bored and neither of you were answering the group chat, so I just decided to come over,” she explained. “And,” she added, looking between the two of them. “I still don’t know how to process this. At all.” Hux sighed.

“Do you want us to tell you the full story?” he asked.

“Yes, please.”

“You might want to sit down,” said Ben.

  
  


When it happened, Ben was only surprised that it hadn’t come sooner. After what had happened to Phasma in the beginning of the year, he had been expecting some sort of retribution from Principal Hux for being friends with his son. Finally, after four months, Ben received a note in class, summoning him to the principal’s office. 

“Ben Solo,” said Mr. Yoda, reading the note that had been handed to him by the hall monitor. “For you, this is.” He walked over and handed the note to Ben, who scanned it carefully. After reading it, he glanced up and saw Hux looking at him, nervously. 

“Is it him?” Hux asked. Ben nodded.

“It’s okay, Hux. Whatever he does can’t be that bad. I’ll be okay.” Hux chewed his bottom lip anxiously as Ben tried to reassure him. 

 

After sitting in the waiting area for a few minutes, Ben was called into Brendol Hux’s office. Not knowing what to expect, he walked in apprehensively.

“Sit down,” said Brendol, gesturing to the seat across from his desk. Ben sat down and stared at Brendol, expectantly. “So,” Brendol began. “You seem to be getting along quite well with my son.”

“He’s my friend,” Ben said with a nod.

“Are you aware that your ‘friend’ is a weak-willed, selfish child who only cares for himself?”

Ben clenched his fists at his sides in anger.

“He’s not like that!” He glared at Brendol, who simply stared back, unamused.

“Well he has always been a good actor, I suppose,” Brendol said, before looking at his computer screen. “I see you have an unexcused absence on your record, Mr. Solo.” 

At this, Ben was taken aback.

“What? No I don’t. I’ve been late before but I’ve never skipped class!”

“Oh, but you do.” Brendol smiled slyly and Ben felt his heart sinking in his chest. “And if I press this button here… oh look, another unexcused absence. Add one more and… well now, three unexcused absences calls for a Saturday detention.”

“You can’t do that!” Ben exclaimed. This was so unfair, and his parents were going to kill him once they found out! He knew they would never believe him if he tried to tell the truth. It would just be another disappointment to them, from their disappointing child.

“I think you’ll find that I  _ can _ , actually,” Brendol said as he typed something on his computer. “I’m sending your parents an email letting them know that you need to be at school at 8am on Saturday for your detention.” He clicked  _ send _ and then turned to look back at Ben. “And you will be serving your detention with me, personally.”

Ben said nothing, feeling a crushing weight on his shoulders. He was going to be in so much trouble when he got home, and he had no idea what Brendol planned to do to him on Saturday, when they would be alone together for hours.

“You may go, Mr. Solo,” Brendol said with a wave of his hand. Ben stood up and grabbed his bag before starting to head to the door. “Perhaps this will teach you a lesson about who you should associate with,” he heard Brendol say behind him. He gritted his teeth as he left the room, filled with dread for what lay in store.

  
  


\------------------------------

 

“Take off that mask, you don’t need it.”

“What do you think you’ll see if I do?”

Kylo Ren stood across from his father on the bridge inside Starkiller Base. Han Solo was standing a few steps away from Kylo, having come to slightly fear his son, who had fallen to the Dark Side.

“The face of my son,” Han replied, and Kylo could see determination in his father’s eyes. Was he that determined to get his perfect son back? His perfect Ben? So determined that he would risk everything by coming to face him out here?

Deciding to humor his father, Kylo reached up and unclasped his helmet before taking it off.

“Your son is gone,” he said, defiantly. “He was weak and foolish, like his father. So I destroyed him.” Kylo repeated the words Snoke had fed to him, hoping to see a reaction from the man he viewed as having wronged him.

“That’s what Snoke wants you to believe,” Han said, slowly walking towards Kylo. “But it’s not true. My son is alive.”

“No,” Kylo said, and every step Han took closer made his heart beat faster. This was it… If he didn’t do it here, he didn’t think he ever would. “The Supreme Leader is wise.”

“Snoke is using you for your power,” Han said, coming still ever closer. “When he gets what he wants, he’ll crush you.” Han came to a stop right in front of Kylo. “You know it’s true.” 

And a small part of Kylo did.

He was silent for a moment, the reality of this situation catching up to his emotions. He tried to stop the tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes.

“It’s too late,” he said, quietly.

“No, it’s not. Leave here with me, come home. We miss you.”

Kylo was silent again as he looked into his father’s face. He looked so sincere… Kylo could almost believe he actually loved him.

“I’m being torn apart,” he said, truthfully. “I want to be free of this pain. And I know what I have to do but I don’t know if I have the strength to do it.” He knew what he had to do. He knew, but… Would he? Could he actually do what needed to be done? “Will you help me?”

“Yes, anything,” Han said, stepping still closer to Kylo. Kylo could see the hope in his eyes and it pierced his heart but he  _ had to. He had to do it. _

Kylo dropped his helmet onto the ground. He paused for a moment, his heart racing, before taking out his lightsaber. He held it out between himself and his father. Han looked at the saber, then back up at Kylo. Kylo looked into his father’s eyes and got the feeling that Han knew what was about to happen, and yet he put his hand on Kylo’s lightsaber anyway.

The air darkened around them and Kylo wasn’t quite sure if it was the sun going out or the darkness inside his mind. He looked at his father, who was now only illuminated by a red glow, and his father stared back at him.

Kylo could back out now. He imagined the possibility of going home with Han, seeing his mother, being  _ Ben  _ again. But he knew in his heart that that could never happen. He had come too far to go back now.

It was now or never.

Before he could change his mind, Kylo ignited his lightsaber.

  
  


Ben woke up in cold sweat, tears streaming down his face. 

He got up and made his way down the hallway to his parents’ room, opening the door slowly. 

“Dad?” he whispered as he went over to his dad’s side of the bed. Han grunted and opened his eyes, squinting at Ben.

“Ben, what are you doing up?”

“I, uh,” Ben flushed, feeling embarrassed. “I had a nightmare. A really bad one…” 

Han sighed. 

“What’s going on?” asked Leia groggily from the other side of the bed.

“Ben had a nightmare,” Han explained, before turning back to Ben. “You wanna sleep in here tonight?”

Ben bit his lip and nodded. Han moved closer to the edge of the bed as Leia did the same, allowing Ben to climb into the middle. 

“You haven’t done this since you were a kid, must’ve been a real bad dream,” Han said.

“Yeah,” replied Ben.

“You know this doesn’t make me any less mad about your detention tomorrow.”

“I know… I love you, dad.”

“I know, son.”

  
  


The next morning, when Ben walked into the classroom he was to be having detention in, he was surprised to find Mr. Threepio waiting for him inside.

“Where’s Principal Hux?” he asked curiously, as he sat down at a desk.

“Principal Hux informed me yesterday that he was going to be late, and that I should oversee the first part of your detention,” said Mr. Threepio. “He should be here in about half an hour.”

“Am I allowed to do homework?”

“I don’t see why that would be a problem.” Mr. Threepio smiled warmly at him. “Some of the problems I assigned on the homework in my class are a bit tricky, so you can let me know if you require any assistance.”

“Thanks, Mr. Threepio,” Ben said as he got his calculus homework out of his bag.

 

Ben had been doing his homework quietly at his desk while Mr. Threepio sat up front for about fifteen minutes when they heard sirens coming from outside. Mr. Threepio stood up and looked out the window.

“Goodness! There seem to be police cars heading towards the back parking lot of the school!”

Ben jumped up. 

“We should go check it out!” he said, before walking out the door.

“Mr. Solo-- wait!” Mr. Threepio came after him. “You should really stay behind in the classroom while I go assess the situation. It could be dangerous!”

“It’s not gonna be dangerous, the police are already here.” Ben turned down a hallway, Mr. Threepio still walking with him. 

“Oh, very well, I suppose I can’t stop you,” Mr. Threepio said, and Ben felt a bit guilty at how defeated the man sounded. Right now, however, he just wanted to see why on earth there were police coming to the school.

They soon got to the back door and the two of them rushed outside to see what all the commotion was about. They turned the corner of the building and stopped in their tracks. A little ways off, there was police tape blocking off a section next to the building. And below the police tape was a body. 

“Oh my goodness--” Mr. Threepio put a shocked hand to his mouth.

Looking at the body, Ben could see that one of its arms was bent at an odd angle, and it was lying unnaturally still, clearly dead. And then, Ben’s heart lurched to see that the body had red hair.

_ No. _

_ It couldn’t be. _

_ It  _ can’t  _ be Hux. _

Suddenly Ben heard a familiar voice from somewhere nearby.

“I t-tried to stop him, b-but he just-- and th-then he--”

Relief flooded Ben. He recognized that voice. He had never heard Hux cry before, but it was clearly him. He turned around and his suspicions were confirmed. There was Armitage Hux, sitting in the back of an ambulance with a shock blanket wrapped around him, talking to two police officers. 

It was at that moment that Ben realized that the dead body, in fact,  _ was  _ Hux. It was Brendol Hux. Ben looked slowly back at the body, then turned around to look back at Armitage. Armitage looked up and caught Ben’s eye. Then, unmistakably, he  _ winked.  _

“Mr. Solo, please, we need to get back inside.” Mr. Threepio was trying to usher him away, and Ben allowed himself to be led, thinking about Hux’s wink. “Did you drive here?” Mr. Threepio asked. Ben shook his head.

“My dad drove me.”

“Well then please call your parents. This detention is cancelled. I will wait with you until one of your parents arrives to pick you up.” Mr. Threepio shook his head. “This is a tragedy, a tragedy indeed.”

  
  


It was early evening when Ben received a text from Hux saying  _ ‘I’m outside.’  _ He rushed outside to meet Hux at his car as he was getting out. 

“Hux,” he said, seriously. “What did you  _ do. _ ”

“Would you mind if I come inside, first?” Hux asked, cheerily. “It’s rather cold out here.”

Ben nodded and led Hux inside, down to the basement where they usually held their Force lessons. Hux sat down on the floor and Ben sat down across from him, looking at him expectantly.

“So?” he said, encouraging Hux to start talking.

“Well,” Hux said. “It was all Phasma’s idea, really. When you said you had detention with my father, I got worried. So, yesterday Phasma went to my father’s office and told him that she had reconsidered his deal from the beginning of the year, and that he was to meet her on the rooftop of the school at 8am today. But when he went up there to meet her this morning, it wasn’t Phasma he found.”

  
  


_ “What are you doing here, boy?” Brendol snarled at Armitage. _

_ “Not who you were expecting, am I?” Armitage said with a small smirk, stepping closer to his father. Brendol had just come up the stairs and onto the roof, and had turned around to see not Phasma, whom he was expecting, but his son, Armitage, instead. _

_ “What is this, some kind of trap?” _

_ “Caught on, have you?” _

_ “What are you hoping to possibly accomplish here, Armitage? Being shut in your room for a week? Is that what you want?” _

_ “No, father,” said Armitage. “I want to have a conversation.” _

_ Brendol quirked an eyebrow. _

_ “You see, Father,” Armitage said, crossing his arms. “I hate you. You are the worst person I have ever had the misfortune to meet.” _

_ “Careful what you say, boy.” Brendol began to move towards Armitage, extending his arm to strike him. But Armitage simply raised a hand and Brendol’s body froze. “What is the meaning of this? How are you doing this?” Brendol’s eyes darted around before settling on Hux’s outstretched hand, which seemed to be holding him still without even touching him. _

_ “Well, I am much more powerful than you think I am, Father. Much more powerful than you. And you are going to finally listen to what I have to say.” _

_ Brendol narrowed his eyes, his face being the only part of him that could move at the moment. _

_ “You are a despicable man,” Armitage continued. “You have been ruining my life since the day I was born. You have hit me, starved me, kept me from having any and all friends. Well I hope you know that now I’ve found friends that are actually staying with me, in spite of you! Real, actual friends, which I’m sure you’ve never had. Maybe that’s why you try to drive away all of my friends: you’re jealous that you’ve never had any, because nobody would ever want to associate with you.” _

_ “Where are you going with this?” Brendol asked, frowning. Armitage stepped closer. _

_ “There’s one more thing I want to tell you, Father. I’m gay.” Armitage grinned, having finally gotten this off of his chest. “I’m gay and there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it.” _

_ “I should have known you would end up disgusting,” Brendol said. He then spat on the ground in front of Armitage. _

_ “You’re going to regret that,” Armitage said with a tut. “I’ve been training my new powers for months, you see, and I’ve been dying to test them out. Making you unable to move is only a small part of what I can do. In fact, there’s one specific thing that I would say I’m quite good at.” He paused for effect, smirking evilly at his father. “I can control people’s will. And you know what I think?” _

_ “What?” Brendol asked, and Armitage could tell that he was trying to sound menacing, though the feaful tremble in his voice gave him away. _

_ “I think…” Armitage dropped his hand that was freezing Brendol. But before Brendol could hit him, Armitage waved a hand in front of his face. “You want to jump off of this building.” _

_ Brendol straightened up, his eyes glazing over. _

_ “I want to jump off of this building,” he repeated. Armitage could feel the fear rolling off of his father in waves, and he relished in it. He watched as Brendol slowly walked over to the edge of the roof. Brendol turned back around to look at his son one last time before falling over backwards. _

_ Armitage heard a sickening crunch when his father’s body hit the ground. He walked over to the edge of the roof and looked down at Brendol’s body in satisfaction. _

_ “Bitch,” he said, before spitting down onto the body below. _

_ After contemplating the body with a smile for a few more minutes, Armitage got out his phone and dialed 911. _

_ “911, what’s your emergency?” said the operator. Armitage began to sniffle, trying his best to sound like he was crying. _

_ “Please help, m-my father just c-committed suicide.” _

  
  


“So… You killed him.” Ben was gaping at Hux.

“Yes,” Hux said. “I did.” He was grinning broadly, an expression that Ben had never seen on him before. “Thank you for all your help, Ben. I couldn’t have done it without your training.”

“I…” Ben let out a small, breathy laugh. “You’re welcome?”

“Also, there’s one more thing,” said Hux, his smile faltering a bit. “When I got home, my stepmum, Maratelle, was absolutely convinced that, even though the police ruled it a suicide, I had something to do with my father’s death. She was right, of course, but… Well, anyway, she kind of kicked me out of the house and now I’m homeless.” Hux shrugged.

“Wait, seriously?” Ben was aghast. “What are you doing to do?”

“Well…” Hux’s face flushed. “Seeing as I only have two friends, and Phasma won’t tell me where she lives, I was… sort of hoping I could stay with you?”

Ben blinked. This was all so sudden.

“Of… Of course! I… shit. Uh…” He had no idea what to do. “We can’t tell my parents. So, maybe you could stay down here? We’ll build, like, a fort for you to sleep in. And I’ll save some food from dinner every night and bring it down to you. We can be like Mike and Eleven from Stranger Things!”

Hux quirked an eyebrow.

“Aren’t Mike and Eleven like, a couple?” he asked. Ben blushed.

“They are, but… They are…” He rubbed the back of his neck, embarrassed. 

“It sounds like a plan,” said Hux. “Thank you, Ben, for letting me stay here, and everything.” Hux leaned over to plant a small kiss on Ben’s cheek. Ben looked up in alarm, and Hux smiled at him. Ben, his heart soaring, smiled back.


	6. The Perfect Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben wakes up feeling... different.

When Ben woke up, he didn’t feel like Ben. He felt… bigger? And perhaps, if he was not mistaken, more in control of the Force swirling around inside him. He looked around in the darkness, his eyes trying to adjust. This did not feel like his bed back home, but he somehow knew that this was his room nonetheless. How was he supposed to turn on the light? The answer suddenly came to him from memories of having done this countless times before.

“Lights seventy percent,” he said. The lights turned on and Ben could see the room clearly now. It definitely wasn’t the room he had in his parents’ house, and yet it was achingly familiar.

He sat up, and immediately shaggy hair fell in front of his face. He pushed it back, his hand brushing against an indent on his face. He ran his fingers over it again and recognized it to be a scar. He remembered then where he had gotten it: during the fight with the scavenger girl on Starkiller Base, on the day he had killed his father. 

Ben sat shocked for a good few moments, excitement bubbling in his chest. He couldn’t believe it, his efforts were fruitful! After weeks of trying to remember his life on earth in his dreams, he had finally achieved it. He was Ben Solo no longer. He was Kylo Ren. 

Ben’s first thought was that he had to find Hux. If Ben remembered his high school life while now being in the galaxy war universe or whatever it was, then Hux probably did, too! He couldn’t wait to revel with Hux in their victory and explore this new world with him. It made his heart flutter just thinking about it.

Ben bounced out of bed excitedly and headed towards the closet to get some clothes, passing a mirror on the way. He doubled back to look at himself, his mouth agape. He was no longer thin and lanky and awkward, he was broad and muscular, and, dare he say it,  _ ripped.  _ He could definitely get used to this.

While he was getting dressed, his brain was trying to catch up with all the new memories. It was an odd, headache-inducing feeling to have the memories of two separate lives all squashed into one brain. Ben remembered his childhood on earth: always getting in trouble at school and taking out his anger during martial arts practice. But he also remembered a childhood in a galaxy far, far away, full of flying through the stars and levitating rocks without touching them.

After tugging on his trousers and an undershirt, Ben went to the refresher that was adjacent to his bedroom to do something about his hair. The one drawback of having luxurious hair, Ben found, was how tangled it tended to get. It took an embarrassingly long time for him to successfully drag the brush through his thick locks, but in the end he managed it all the same. Feeling satisfied with his work, Ben left the refresher to put on the rest of his clothes. After putting on his tunic and belt and donning his boots, gloves, and cloak, he straightened himself out in front of the mirror, suddenly feeling anxious. He was supposed to be the Supreme Leader of the First Order, but mentally he was really only sixteen years old. What if he messed something up? He closed his eyes and breathed deeply, reminding himself that he not only had his own memories to work with, but Kylo Ren’s as well. Then, with a pang of unease, he recalled that Kylo Ren didn’t really know what he was doing, either. Letting out a determined sigh, Ben nodded at his reflection before leaving his quarters.

As soon as he stepped out into the corridor of the  _ Finalizer,  _ Ben realized that he didn’t know where Hux would be. He figured that since Hux spent most of his time on the bridge, he could begin his search there. Petty officers jumped out of Ben’s way in fear as he walked past, and Ben revelled in it. It was an intoxicating feeling, to be feared.

When he got to the bridge, he was pleased to find Hux standing in his usual spot, his hard gaze trained on the viewport ahead, occasionally turning to examine what his officers were doing. 

“General Hux.”

Hux turned at the sound of Ben’s voice.

“Yes, Supreme Leader?”

“I would like a private word.”

Hux cocked an eyebrow.

“We were just about to run a simulation, Supreme Leader. Can it wait?” he asked.

“It cannot,” Ben replied, containing his jitteriness in an attempt to maintain his facade as Kylo Ren. He had to admit, Hux was doing a remarkable job at playing his role of the General.

Hux frowned slightly.

“Very well.” Hux left the bridge with Ben following. They turned a corner and Hux opened the door to a nearby utility closet. “This will do, I think,” he said. Ben nodded in agreement. Hux had good thinking, a utility closet was perfect for a private conversation they didn’t want anyone else to hear. After all, they couldn’t let anyone else in on the fact that the First Order was now being run essentially by two teenagers.

Hux shut the door behind them as soon as they were inside.

“Alright, let’s make this quick,” he said. “I have to be back on the bridge soon but I can be absent for maybe fifteen minutes or so.” And before Ben could say anything, Hux was kissing him. Ben’s eyes widened dramatically as Hux’s mouth moved against his, and against all of his instincts telling him that something was very  _ wrong,  _ Ben found himself kissing back. It was only a few short moments, however, before Ben came to his senses and pushed Hux off.

“Wait, Hux, wh-what are you doing?” he spluttered, his face scarlet. Hux furrowed his brow in confusion.

“I thought you--” he began to say, before closing his mouth for a moment to think. “Usually, when you call me away from the bridge for a ‘private conversation,’ this is what you mean by it.”

Ben’s already accelerating heart rate sped up as he recalled that yes, that was indeed a thing he had done several times in the past as Kylo Ren. 

“Um, yes,” he said, awkwardly, trying to calm himself down. “Yeah, you’re totally right. That is what. I usually do. But--”

“Ren, are you feeling alright?”

“Perfectly fine!” Ben exclaimed, his voice several octaves higher than it usually was.

“What  _ did  _ you call me in here for, then?” Hux asked, crossing his arms.

“Hux… It’s me, Ben! Don’t you remember?” Ben could feel absolute confusion radiating off of Hux.

“Remember what?” They looked at each other for a few moments, and Ben came to a realization. This wasn’t his Hux. This was General Hux of the First Order.

“I…” Ben paused, considering, before shaking his head. “Never mind. I uh, I gotta go…”

“We’ll continue this later, though?” General Hux inquired, raising a suggestive eyebrow at Ben. 

“Yep! Sure! Later,” Ben replied nervously, his voice going high again. General Hux considered him for a moment, still highly confused, before opening the closet door and stepping out, presumably to head back to the bridge. Ben leaned against the wall, dread creeping through his body as the reality of his situation caught up with him. He was alone, in another universe, and he had no idea what to do or how to get back.

  
  
  
  


Looking at his phone, Hux frowned as he discovered that he had been sitting in his car, waiting for Ben to come outside to go to school, for over ten minutes.

To make sure that Ben’s parents didn’t find out that Hux was living in their basement, Hux and Ben had developed a system in the mornings in which Hux would sneak out of the house and go get his car, which he had parked down the road, and drive it back over to Ben’s house, where he would then wait for Ben to come out of the house so they could go to school. The system had been working pretty well so far, but where on earth was Ben this morning?

After waiting for another five minutes, Hux decided to sneak back inside to see what was up. Opening the door quietly, Hux was relieved to find that Ben’s parents weren’t up yet. Apparently ever since Hux had started driving Ben to school in the mornings, Ben’s parents had started sleeping in a bit.

Hux cautiously made his way up the stairs to Ben’s room before knocking softly on the door. After being met with no answer, he knocked again, slightly louder.

“Ben?” he said, through the door. “Are you alright?” Yet again, no answer. “I’m coming in.” He opened the door and peered inside. He sighed in annoyance as he saw Ben sprawled out on his bed, fast asleep. He walked over and nudged him. “Ben come on, we’re late.” Ben made no move to stir, and Hux frowned. “Ben?” He reached over and tried to shake Ben awake to no avail. “Ben, come on.” He shook him harder, but Ben was still unconscious. If his chest hadn’t been moving up and down to signify his breathing, Hux might have thought him dead.

Hux spent a good five minutes more trying to wake Ben up, getting more and more distressed as time went on. Why wasn’t he waking up? What was wrong with him? Finally, he stood up, resigning himself to what he had to do next. Taking a few deep breaths, he walked down the hallway and knocked on the door to Ben’s parents’ room.

A few moments later found Han opening the door and looking at Hux in confusion.

“Armitage? What are you doing here?”

“I…” Hux shifted nervously. “I sort of, live here. In the basement.”

“What?”

“A-After my father died, my stepmum kicked me out and Ben, he set up a fort for me down in the basement to live in. He didn’t want to tell you because he didn’t think you’d allow it, I’m sorry.”

By this point, Leia had appeared at the door as well and had heard Hux’s explanation.

“Wait,” she said, clearly trying to wrap her sleep-addled mind around this news. “Since your father died? That must have been about two weeks ago, right?”

“Something like that,” Hux said. “But listen, that’s not important right now. Ben’s not waking up!”

“What do you mean?” asked Han, crossing his arms.

“I tried to wake him but he, he just won’t wake up! I don’t know why, I--” Before he could say any more, Han and Leia had rushed into Ben’s room. After trying in vain to wake Ben up, as Hux had done, Leia retrieved her phone from her room and quickly called 911.

  
  
  


“How did this happen?” Phasma asked. She was sitting in a chair beside Ben’s hospital bed, staring at his sleeping face with her brow furrowed in concern. In the chair next to her, Hux frowned.

“I have a theory,” he said. Phasma turned to look at him, cocking her head to the side in inquiry. “Last night in my dream, you know, another one of those space dreams me and Ben have that we were telling you about?” He looked at Phasma and she nodded, to signify that she remembered. “In the dream, Kylo Ren and I were… Well, it doesn’t matter what we were doing.” Phasma raised an eyebrow at Hux’s reddening face. “But, then he said, ‘It’s me, Ben. Don’t you remember?’ And the me in the dream was really confused, but…” He swallowed, looking at Phasma anxiously. “Phasma, I think Ben is trapped in the dream.”

“How do you figure?” she asked. “Like, how could that even happen?”

“Ben and I have been trying for weeks to remember our lives on earth when we enter our dreams. Mainly by meditating on it right before bed, you know, connecting to the Force and all that. And… I think Ben actually did it.”

“But now he’s in a coma.”

Phasma and Hux turned back to look at Ben, their expressions morose. 

“I have to try to get into the dream, too,” Hux said after a few moments of silence. “I  _ have  _ to. Maybe then we can try to find a way back together. I…” He sighed, looking at the ground. “I really like him, Phasma…”

“Yeah, no shit,” she replied. Hux frowned, still looking down.

“No, I mean like…  _ Romantically. _ ” There was a pause before Phasma spoke again.

“Yeah, no shit,” she said. Hux looked up at her.

“What does that mean?” he asked, incredulously.

“Honestly, for a pair of supposed mind readers, you two are incredibly oblivious.” Phasma raised an eyebrow as Hux gaped at her.

“You knew?” 

“Of course I knew! It was obvious! Hux, Ben has liked you nearly since the first day you transferred here and you’ve liked him for nearly as long.” Phasma sighed as Hux fell silent, pondering this startling news. “You really didn’t know?” she asked, before rolling her eyes. “Honestly, and I thought us lesbians were bad.”

Ignoring Phasma, Hux reached over to take Ben’s hand. 

“I will find you,” he said, quietly. “I’ll rescue you, Ben. I promise.”

  
  
  


When Hux awoke, he knew immediately that something was different.

Using the Force, he silenced the alarm that was beeping incessantly at him before sitting up.

“Lights eighty percent,” he said, on instinct. As the lights came on, Hux looked around and beamed in triumph. It had been three days since Ben had fallen into a coma, three days of trying desperately to remember himself during his dreams, and he had finally achieved it. As memories of both lives came flooding back to him, Hux looked at the clock on his bedside table and realized in a panic that he only had a half hour before he had to be on the bridge. But he couldn’t go to the bridge now! He had to find Ben! Damn, and he had said that he would inspect Phasma’s troops today as well. Thankfully the trooper inspection wasn’t until the afternoon, so he had all morning to figure things out with Ben. 

Using the Force to grab his datapad from his bedside table, he sent a message to Lieutenant Mitaka informing him that he would be late to his shift on the bridge that morning, as he had some urgent matters to attend to. Feeling satisfied, he got ready for the day quickly before leaving his quarters, heading towards the Supreme Leader’s chambers in search of Kylo Ren.

Upon reaching the Supreme Leader’s quarters, Hux rang the seldom-used buzzer and waited anxiously for the door to open. He waited for a minute or so before the door whooshed open to reveal a disheveled Ren, who had clearly been asleep until about a minute ago.

“General! Uh… It’s early.”

“May I come in?” Hux asked. 

“I… I guess so,” Ren replied, before moving out of the way to let Hux inside. 

“Just woke up, huh?” Hux asked as he strode inside. “Honestly, you’d think that if you were asleep here, you might wake up in the real world.” He turned to look at Ren as the door shut behind him. “Ben, it’s me.” He smiled. Ben’s face lit up in understanding.

“Hux, thank god.” He immediately enveloped Hux in a bone-crushing hug. “I thought I was all alone here.” 

“I missed you too, Ben,” Hux said with a chuckle, reaching up to wrap his arms around Ben’s broad shoulders. Ben pulled back after a few moments to look at him, a grin spreading across his face.

“I can’t believe you made it!  _ We  _ made it! Wait--” His face fell. “What do you mean, ‘wake up in the real world?’” Hux frowned.

“Ben… You’ve been in a coma for three days.”

“A coma? Shit, I’ve been here for about three days.” Hux nodded as Ben ran a hand through his hair. “How did you know I was trapped here?”

“The night before I woke up to discover that you, well, hadn’t, I had a dream in which I remembered you saying like, ‘it’s me, Ben. Don’t you remember?’ So I pieced it together from that.”

“Nice sleuthing there, man.” Ben grinned and playfully hit Hux on the shoulder. Hux smiled and rolled his eyes.

“Speaking of the dreams, since that one, you haven’t been in any of my dreams. Where have you been?” 

Ben’s face colored.

“I, uh… I’ve kind of been avoiding you… Other you, I mean. The General.”

“Avoiding me? Why?” Ben raised an eyebrow at Hux.

“Don’t you remember what happened in that dream a few nights ago?” he asked. Hux’s eyes widened in remembrance. 

“Ah. Right, yes. I…” He cleared his throat. “I do remember that, yes.” He narrowed his eyes at Ben. “But wait a moment. You weren’t Kylo Ren in that dream, you were Ben. But when I kissed you… you kissed back.” The two of them stared at each other for a few moments. Ben swallowed nervously before slowly nodding. Hux had the sudden urge to step forward, closer to Ben, and he did so. His heart pounded in his chest as Ben stepped closer as well, the space between them nearly nonexistent. Hux looked into his eyes and noticed Ben’s gaze flickering down to his lips. That was as much confirmation as he was ever going to get, he figured, so he took the final step and closed the distance between them.

 

Kissing Hux now wasn’t anything like when Ben had kissed General Hux in that utility closet a few days prior. In the utility closet, the General was heated and passionate. This, however, was slow and awkward, but emotional and  _ nice.  _ This wasn’t General Hux, this was  _ his  _ Hux, the Hux he had had a crush on for months, the Hux with whom he sat at lunch every day. The fact that Hux was actually kissing him back blew Ben’s mind. He reached up to gently cup Hux’s face in his hands, savoring the taste of his lips. They pulled away after a while and looked at each other, their gazes locked until Hux suddenly started giggling. This made Ben start giggling as well and soon neither of them could stop. The two men – well, boys – stood there, holding each other and giggling, for a few minutes until they finally calmed down. Then they were just standing there and holding each other, smiles plastered on both of their faces.

“I really, really like you, Hux,” Ben said, quietly.

“I know,” replied Hux, before sighing. “How are we going to get back to our own universe?”

“As long as we’re together, I’m sure we’ll figure it out,” Ben said. 

“As long as we’re together,” echoed Hux, though not feeling altogether reassured.


	7. Temptation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben and Hux have an argument, and Ben and Rey come up with a plan.

“I swear to God, I can’t deal with not being able to listen to the music I like here,” Ben complained as he whooshed into Hux’s chambers one morning as Hux was going over reports at his desk.

“Oh, I know,” Hux replied with a groan. “I’ve had that song you recommended to me stuck in my head for the entire week that we’ve been here and I’ve been dying to listen to it.”

“Wait, you actually listened to 20 Dollar Nosebleed?” Ben stopped in his tracks to look at Hux in shock, his face conveying that he was flattered at the same time. 

Hux smiled at him and nodded, and Ben’s eyes widened further. “And you actually liked it?” he pressed. Hux nodded again, and Ben grinned. “Oh my God, that’s awesome. It’s a super good song, right?”

“It is, actually. It’s very catchy and honestly, Patrick Stump has been growing on me. Brendon Urie is alright, too, of course,” Hux stated, making Ben’s heart leap. This was utmost praise coming from Hux, who, honestly, was a bit of a music snob.

“I know, right? Patrick Stump is such a good singer and-- shit, what was that?” Ben jumped at the sight of an orange blur out of the corner of his eye, moving quickly around Hux’s bedchambers. He looked back at Hux and was surprised to see an amused grin cross his face. He continued to be confused when Hux got up from behind his desk and crossed the room into his bedchambers.

“Apparently,” he said, loudly, from his bedchambers. “In this universe, I…” He came back into the main room holding a squirming orange ball of fur that was very much alive and looked  _ very  _ annoyed. “Have a cat!” Hux grinned down at the furry mass in his arms. Ben stepped closer, a smile creeping onto his face.

“What’s his name?” he asked, reaching slowly out to pet the cat.

“ _ Her  _ name is Millicent. And be careful, she scratches.” And, to prove Hux right, Millicent’s paw suddenly swiped at Ben’s hand, leaving a shallow cut underneath his pinkie.

“Ow!” he exclaimed, quickly pulling his hand back as Hux rolled his eyes in amusement. Suddenly Hux’s datapad started beeping on the desk and Hux let Millicent down so he could go look at it. He glanced at the notification and smiled as he silenced it.

“What are you so happy about?” Ben asked him, curiously.

“It’s almost my bridge shift,” Hux explained. “I’m running a simulation today,” he added, excitedly.

“Yay?” Ben replied, a bit confused. “You’re excited about work?”

“Of course I am! We run an empire, Ren. What’s not to love? It’s great being a general.”

“I guess…” Hux walked briskly over to Ben and hesitantly put his arms around him. They had only been together for a week, so much of their movements were still quite awkward. Ben smiled and returned Hux’s embrace before leaning down to kiss him. Hux kissed back softly, letting out a pleased little hum as he did so. 

“I’ll see you later, alright?” Hux said as he pulled back. Ben nodded with a smile. 

He pondered Hux’s enthusiasm for his job in this universe as Hux shoved him out of his quarters to get ready for his shift. On the way back to his own quarters, he thought about his own experience over the past week. For the most part, he had been meditating in an attempt to find a way home, since he was apparently in a coma in his original universe, and so was Hux now probably. In light of this, he hadn’t had as much experience with his new job as Hux had. Ben supposed that Hux had gotten used to his position as the General of the First Order, and was honestly impressed with how well his friend – no,  _ boyfriend  _ – had taken to the role.

Suddenly remembering something, Ben stopped in his tracks. He had gone to visit Hux’s quarters for a reason, and not just to see his new boyfriend. On the way to his quarters, however, he had started thinking about music and had gotten distracted. What he had really wanted to discuss, however, was that his research on the ways to get home had led him to a backwater planet in the Outer Rim that was incredibly strong with the Force. Ben was thinking that if he went there, he might be able to harness enough power to get them home. 

Oh well, he figured. He didn’t necessarily  _ need  _ to talk to Hux about his plan before beginning to set it in motion. He would make the preparations today while Hux was on the bridge, and then tell Hux about the plan when he saw him later that evening. 

Satisfied with his plan, Ben made his way towards his quarters to allocate the necessary funds with his datapad.

 

“Ben, why the fuck did you spend all those credits on some random expedition?” Hux asked as he stalked into Ben’s quarters that afternoon. “I have a very detailed budget plan and you just  _ had  _ to go and shit all over it, didn’t you?”

“What?” Ben asked as he stood up from where he was meditating, confused. “How the fuck was I supposed to know I had to go through you and your ‘special budget plan’ before making any purchases?  _ I’m  _ the Supreme Leader,  _ I  _ should get to buy whatever I want.”

“You have no bloody clue how to run the Order, do you?  _ Every  _ organization has budgets! Even small ones!” Hux strode over to him and angrily poked him in the chest.

“I’m running the Order just fine!”

“Ren, you can’t even lead a group history project, let alone an empire.”

“Hey, we got an A on that project!” Ben said indignantly.

“Yes, if only because your cousin is a damn good researcher.”

“Yeah, meanwhile you were too busy ‘researching’ Poe Dameron.” Hux spluttered at Ben’s statement, his face going red.

“Researching Poe Da-- What in the stars is that supposed to mean?”

“Don’t think I didn’t notice your little crush on him in the beginning of the year. Ya ain’t subtle.” Ben frowned and rolled his eyes at Hux.

“That’s absolute nonsense,” Hux countered. “Poe Dameron is rebel scum, a treacherous member of the Resistance, how dare you imply that I would even associate with--”

“No, Hux, he’s  _ not  _ ‘rebel scum’ or whatever! He’s our classmate! He’s the captain of the boys’ soccer team! He’s not a fighter pilot. Don’t you get it?  _ This universe isn’t real! _ ”

“This universe is just as real as the one we came from, Ren. And in fact, I think it’s a much better one.” Hux crossed his arms as Ben stared at him.

“What… So you’re saying you want to like, stay here?”

“Actually,” said Hux, deliberating. “I think I do. And you should, too! Think about it, Ren. We have all the power here! We are in charge of an entire empire, and as soon as we wipe out the rest of the Resistance we’ll be ruling the whole galaxy!”

“My mom is part of that ‘loathsome Resistance’ you want to destroy so much,” Ben grumbled.

“We won’t kill her, then, if you care so much about it,” Hux said, dismissively. “We’ll capture her, give her a comfortable life as a prisoner. Or maybe we could exile her to the Outer Rim.”

“I want to go back to my real parents… Hux, I miss my dad.”

“Hm. Can’t relate.”

“Come on, Hux. We have to go back to our own universe. It isn’t right to stay here.”

“Like hell it’s not. I actually have something worth living for here, and I found out that I’m damn good at what I do. We both know you’re lacking a bit in your own position, but if you stay here with me I can help you! We can rule together.”

“I don’t know, Hux. I… I get this feeling that we’re like… the bad guys.”

“You… you ‘get a feeling’? Ren. This universe has two sides to it. We are literally on the one that is called the ‘dark side.’ Yes,  _ obviously  _ we’re the bad guys, did you not notice?” Ben blinked and gaped at Hux.

“And you’re just… okay with being the bad guy?”

“Ren, I murdered my father in cold blood. In both universes.”

“Yeah but he was a super bad person. Here, though, we’re killing innocent people. Dude, you blew up a whole solar system! How can you be okay with that?”

“You murdered a bunch of children, what’s your excuse?” Hux said, defensively.

“Don’t turn this on me. I’m the one who wants to go home and, y’know,  _ not be evil.  _ Do you really want to be a villain? Do you really think you’re going to even win that way?”

“This isn’t a movie, Ren. This is real life. Evil wins all the time.”

There was silence between the two of them for a minute as they both glared at each other. Finally, Hux spoke.

“What is that expedition for, Ben?”

“I… I found a planet in the Outer Rim with a strong Force presence. I figured if we went there, we might be able to harness the power to go back to our own universe.”

“We can go to that planet Ren, and we can try and send you back. But…”

“You’re not coming back with me?” Ben asked, sadness and hurt in his eyes. Hux sighed as he looked at him.

“I want to stay here, Ren… I have a good life here. And you do, too. But I know you miss your family…” Ben took one of Hux’s hands in his own.

“But I’m going to miss you, too. So much… Hux we only just finally got together.”

“I know,” replied Hux, sadly, squeezing Ben’s hand. “But I’ve got to think of the bigger picture. Besides, I’ll still have you. Not, like,  _ you  _ you, but I’m assuming when you leave, the regular Kylo Ren will return or something. I’m not quite sure how this works…”

“But what happens when you stay here, huh? Hux, in the other world, we’re both in comas. If you stay here, you won’t wake up…” 

Hux furrowed his brow. He hadn’t thought about that.

“I’m still not changing my mind, Ren. I’m sorry. I won’t go back just so you won’t lose me. I thought you, as my best friend, should know by now that I only ever do things for myself.”

“Yeah, that’s why you listened to a bunch of music you hated because I recommended it to you. Not for me at all, nope. Only selfish.” Ben frowned as Hux glared at him.

“Let me know how preparations for our expedition go, and don’t spend any more credits without going through me, first. Understood?”

Ben nodded solemnly, and Hux left the room, leaving Ben feeling utterly deflated. He was left standing in the middle of the room, trying to process the prospect of Hux not coming back with him, when his vision of the room obscured and in its place in front of him stood Rey, looking quite annoyed.

“Just great,” she said. Ben noticed that she was sitting at a table, and wondered if there was someone else sitting across from her that he couldn’t see. As Ben looked at her, he was struck with a sudden idea.

“Rey!” he exclaimed in excitement. “You can help me!”

She looked at him curiously, her interest obviously having been piqued. 

“Why would I want to help you?” she asked. 

“Okay,” said Ben. “Well, you probably won’t believe what I’m about to tell you, but…” He launched into his explanation of how he was from another world and just wanted to go back home and not be a bad guy anymore. Rey’s expression changed from incredulous, to confused, to intrigued. “... And since you’re also super strong with the Force, I was wondering if maybe…” He trailed off as he thought of another potential idea. Who else in the galaxy was as strong with the Force as he and Rey were?

“Wondering if maybe what?” Rey asked, giving him her undivided attention.

“I…” Ben took a breath. “I want to see my mom.” Rey furrowed her brow at this, giving him a slightly pitying look. “I think if maybe you, me, and her all combine our power with the Force, we can fix this mess. And also…” He sighed. “I want to tell her… I’m sorry. And that I love her…”

“How do I know this isn’t a ploy so you can capture us?” Rey asked, suspiciously.

“If you look into my mind, you’ll see all these memories of the other world.” Ben closed his eyes and opened his mind, letting down all the mental barriers he usually had in place to give Rey access. 

Rey concentrated on sifting through Ben’s memories, the suspicion on her face clearing.

“It’s really true, isn’t it, Ben?” she asked. Ben smiled at her. “What?”

“It’s just… nobody calls me Ben here. Not even Hux, and he’s from the other world too. It’s… nice.”

Rey smiled back at him.

“Speaking of Hux,” she said. “Really? You and him?” Ben’s cheeks colored.

“Uh, yeah. He’s… He’s not all bad, you know. And the Hux I got to know didn’t blow up a star system,” he defended Hux to Rey, who was raising an eyebrow at him. “He was just a kid who got abused by his dad and just wanted some friends…” There was silence as Rey contemplated.

“So,” Ben said after a while. “Will you help me?”

“I believe you, Ben. And I’ll try. General Organa doesn’t trust you, but you are her son. Maybe I can convince her to meet with you.” She offered him a gentle smile, which he returned, gratefully.

“Thank you, Rey. I promise, when I get back to my own universe I’ll be nicer to that version of you,” he said. The connection cut off as Rey laughed, leaving Ben with a small grin of his own.


	8. True Faith

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ben and Hux go to meet up with Rey and Leia in order to try and fix the mess they're in, and hopefully send Ben back home.

“Hux, no.”

“But--”

“I promised them I wouldn’t.” Hux sighed as Ben frowned determinedly.

“This is stupid, Ren.”

“They promised they wouldn’t, either.”

“And you really believe that. Really. They’re the enemy! We’ve got to bring some backup,” Hux said with a frown.

“They said they would come alone, and that we should come alone, too,” Ben countered. Hux rolled his eyes.

“If we get captured or killed, it is your fault,” he said. “How do you know they even believe your little story about how we’re from another world?”

“Rey believes me,” Ben said, confidently. “I know she does.”

“Whatever,” Hux grumbled. “Let’s just go. Your ship?”

“If that’s okay.”

Ben and Hux boarded Kylo Ren’s ship together, Ben immediately heading for the pilot’s chair while Hux took the copilot’s. Hux opened his mouth to speak again, then closed it. Ben raised an eyebrow at him.

“What?” Ben asked.

“Nothing…” Hux replied, remaining silent for a few moments. “Well it’s just that don’t you think we should at least bring a couple of stormtroopers with us, for protection?”

“Hux, if it gets dangerous, I’ll protect you. I promise,” Ben said, starting to get annoyed. Hux blushed and looked away with a huff. Ben turned around in his seat to look at him. “Hux, look at me. Hey.” Hux glanced back at him with what could only be described as a pout. Ben chuckled and leaned in to kiss him. Hux kissed back softly, and through the Force, Ben could feel his agitation draining a little. After a few moments, Ben pulled away and leaned his forehead against Hux’s with a sigh. The two of them watched each other for a few moments before Ben spoke. “You gotta promise me, before I leave this universe, you gotta let me kiss you one last time…” He cupped Hux’s face with his hand, softly rubbing a thumb over his cheek.

Hux nodded.

“I promise,” he said, softly.

Ben smiled and pulled away so he could start the ship. Hux left a hand on his arm as he did so, squeezing it comfortably. Ben could feel Hux’s guilt at staying here without him, and it saddened him. He wanted Hux to be happy about whatever decision he was going to make. He knew Hux would be happy in this universe, however, even if it was without him. Hux had the life he had always wanted, being in control of an entire empire. Ben wasn’t about to take that away from him.

 

After a few hours of flying, they landed the ship on the Outer Rim planet Ben had researched, a swampy planet by the name of Dagobah. As they got off the ship, Ben was immediately hit by a wave of familiarity, of family. His mother was already here, and not too far off, either. But even beneath her presence, he felt something deeper, something older. His uncle had been here. He didn’t know when, but he would know his Force signature anywhere. There was another presence, too… Ben racked his brain, coming up with images of his high school AP U.S. history teacher. Mr. Yoda… The Yoda from this universe had been here, as well. His presence was overwhelmingly strong.

“Ren?”

Ben was snapped out of his trance by Hux, who had come up beside him and was looking at him with worry.

“Yeah, sorry,” Ben replied, shaking his head dismissively. “The Force is just really strong here.”

“Yes, I know, I can feel it,” Hux said with a small shiver. “It really is quite overwhelming.”

“My mother is already here,” Ben said, looking around, trying to pinpoint exactly where General Organa’s energy was coming from.

“Where do we need to go?” Hux asked.

“This way,” Ben said, pointing towards a clump of trees and beginning to walk, Hux following shortly behind. 

 

They soon came upon a small hut that was simply exuding Force energy. Ben and Hux stopped in their tracks when they saw who was standing in front of the hut. General Organa and Rey stood talking to one another, but they stopped when the two boys approached. Ben’s eyes nearly filled with tears when he locked gazes with his mother, suddenly overwhelmed by everything he had done to hurt her in this universe. 

“Mother…” He stepped forward on shaky feet. She turned her full body towards him, her mistrusting eyes clearly searching him for malintent. Finding none, she stepped forward as well, her expression mirroring her son’s. Ben took a few more wary steps, unsure of whether she would allow him to go to her completely. 

“Ben,” she said, her voice weary but warm. She smiled through her brimming tears and opened her arms, prompting Ben to immediately take the final steps towards her and envelop her in a tight hug.

“Mom, I’m so sorry, I’m so, so sorry.” Ben cried the words over and over again into the top of her head. He wasn’t even sure exactly what he was saying anymore, he just had to get the message across to her that he was sorry for what he had done. 

“Shhh, honey…” Leia reached up to pat his hair comfortingly. “Hey, sweetheart, look at me.” She took Ben’s face in her hands and forced him to look at her. “Rey explained your situation to me. She says you’re just a teenager, right?” Ben sniffled and nodded.

“B-But, I have all these memories,” Ben tried to explain. “All my memories of this world. I-I remember k-killing all those kids, a-and I remember…” He let the tears fall freely down his face. “I miss Dad,” he whispered. At this, he saw a tear run down his mother’s face, too.

“I know, baby…” Leia put a hand on Ben’s cheek to wipe some of his tears away. “I miss him too…” 

“I’m sorry,” Ben repeated. Leia nodded.

“I know… You want Rey and I to help you get back to your world, right?” she asked.

“Do you think it’s possible?” Ben asked.

“I think so. We were thinking about ways to do it on the way over here.”

“So was I.”

“Good.” She stepped away from Ben and looked over at Hux. “You’re in the same boat as Ben, aren’t you, honey?”

Hux walked over to them awkwardly, with a nod.

“Alright,” said Leia. “Let’s go inside this hut, then, and we can figure out how to send you both home.” She started to walk into the hut.

“I’m not going back,” said Hux, causing Leia and Rey both to look around at him in surprise. “I-I like it here,” Hux explained. “If… If you’ll let me go, that is. Once Ren goes back to our world.”

Leia stepped towards Hux, her eyes narrowed. 

“Why would we let you go back to the First Order if you’re so dangerous to us there?” she asked, looking up at him. 

“I don’t have to be dangerous to you. We could, we could come to some sort of agreement…”

“Like what?”

“Er…” Hux furrowed his brow, clearly getting a little scared.

“Mom, please. Just let him go, just this once,” Ben said. Hux smiled at him gratefully. “He’s here to help me. And…” Ben grabbed Hux’s hand and squeezed it. “I care a lot about him…”

Leia sighed and shared a glance with Rey, who had her eyes dangerously narrowed as well.

“Very well,” said Leia. Hux’s eyes widened at her.

“Really?” he asked. 

“This incident is isolated from the war,” Leia said. “You don’t attack us, we won’t attack you. We all live to fight another day.”

“I… Thank you,” Hux said with a small smile.

“Let’s get inside,” Rey said, gesturing to the hut. “Get Ben back where he belongs.”

 

“So what were you guys thinking?” Ben asked, once they were all sat in a circle on the floor of the small hut.

“If we can all link our minds, and you focus on your memories of your world, I think that, combined with the energy on this planet, will probably be strong enough to send you back,” Rey explained. 

“I was thinking that too, actually,” said Ben with a smile.

“Good, so we’re all on the same page,” said Leia. “Are you ready?”

Ben looked at Hux, who gave him a sad smile in return.

“Just, give us a moment,” said Ben. He scooted closer to Hux and placed a hand on his cheek. “You--”

“I know, I promised.” Hux smiled and leaned in to kiss Ben. They kissed for a few moments before Ben pulled away and rested his forehead against Hux’s.

“I don’t want to leave you…”

“I know…”

“Keep yourself safe here, okay?” Ben stroked Hux’s cheek as Hux chuckled.

“I’ll try, but no promises,” Hux replied.

“God, Hux, I’m gonna miss you.” Ben leaned forward to kiss Hux one last time. Hux kissed back, and Ben could feel so many mixed emotions radiating off of him. Fear, sadness, guilt… 

Finally, Ben pulled away and looked back at Leia and Rey. 

“I’m ready,” he said with a nod. Leia nodded back, sadly. “Oh, and Mom?”

“Yes, honey?”

“If the other me never says it again… I love you.” 

“I know.” They shared a melancholy smile. “Alright,” said Leia after a few moments of silence. “Everybody close your eyes and concentrate. We need to all link our minds together.” 

One by one, Rey, Leia, Ben, and Hux all closed their eyes and cleared their minds. Ben could sense Hux’s Force presence next to him and moved closer to it, eventually connecting with it. He heard Hux gasp as it happened, and he could feel Hux’s mind as it moved in sync with his own. Together they reached out and found Leia, and her energy was like pure gold. He hadn’t felt this much pure Light since he was training to be a jedi. Rey’s energy joined them seconds later, another overwhelming burst of Light. 

Knowing what he had to do next, Ben focused on his life back on Earth. He remembered what he looked like when he looked in the mirror. He remembered his school, and his teachers. He remembered Phasma, and how much he missed her. He remembered his parents, and how much he was looking forward to going back into their arms. As he remembered, Light overtook him. His senses of the world around him were ebbing away. He could no longer feel the floor of the hut beneath him, or even the clothes that were on his body. He heard a faint beeping sound. The sound was drawing him closer and closer, getting louder and louder.

He gasped as everything suddenly went black, and he opened his eyes. He stared at the tiled ceiling above him, an overwhelming, familiar, sterile smell around him. The beeping sound was more present now, and Ben looked next to him to see that he was hooked up to a machine. He sat up as medical staff rushed into the room, feeling a bit lightheaded. He was back. He made it.

 

Ben was trying to convince a nurse to take the IV out of his arm, insisting that he was perfectly fine, when his parents rushed in. 

“Mom, Dad,” he said, his face splitting into a grin. 

“Oh, Ben!” Leia hugged him tightly. “We were so worried, when Hux told us you weren’t waking up, we didn’t know what to think. And then the poor boy fell into a coma, too. Nobody had any idea what was going on.” Ben’s face fell. Hux… Hux wasn’t going to wake up. Leia pulled away from the hug just as Ben’s eyes filled with tears. “Oh, honey…”

“I miss him,” he said, his voice hoarse from having been asleep for over a week.

“Hey,” Han said, putting a hand on Ben’s shoulder. “You woke up, so he’ll probably be awake in no time, right?” Tears fell from Ben’s eyes and he shook his head. He reached for his father, who moved closer so Ben could hug him. “Hey, kid, it’s all gonna be okay.”

“I love you, Dad.”

“Love you too, Ben.”

“Ben!” Ben looked up to see Phasma, who had just run into the room. “Ben, thank God you’re both awake.” She more or less pushed Han out of the way so she could hug her friend.

“Hi, Phasma,” Ben said, hugging her back. Then her words started to sink into his brain. “Wait… both? What do you mean, both?”

“Hux just woke up too,” Phasma said, pulling away to look at him. “I just saw him.” Ben blinked several times. Hux was awake? He could hardly believe it. He was so sure Hux was going to stay in the other world... 

“I have to see him,” he said, sitting up straighter. “Hey!” he called to a nurse passing by outside. “Get me off this machine! I have to see my friend!” 

 

It took a while for Ben and Han to convince the medical staff to unhook Ben from the IV (Leia stayed out of it, of the opinion that the staff knew what was best for Ben). The nurses were extremely hesitant, as Ben had been in a coma for a week. But after running multiple tests and coming to the conclusion that there was nothing at all physically wrong with him, Ben was finally sprinting out of his room, headed towards the room number that the nurses had told him. 

When he reached the correct room, he barged through the door, hoping against hope that Phasma was right, that Hux really was awake. Sure enough, as Ben entered the room, the boy in question on the bed turned to look at him. Hux smiled as Ben stopped in his tracks, almost not believing his eyes.

“Hux, you… Is it really you?” he asked, panting a bit.

“Hi, Ben,” Hux said. “Yeah, it’s me.” Ben crossed the room in two swift strides and hugged Hux tightly.

“I thought you said you weren’t coming back,” he mumbled into the crook of Hux’s neck.

“Yeah, well, it was a heat of the moment decision, really,” he said. Ben pulled back to look at him, confused. “I just…” Hux bit his lip, trying to figure out how to describe his decision-making process. “I loved the other world. But it just… wasn’t right, you know? I know I said, that I actually had something to live for in the other world. But I realized right when you went back here, that I have something to live for here, too. I have friends, and people who care about me…” Hux took Ben’s hand and squeezed it. Ben nodded, smiling broadly.

“Yeah, you do…”  He placed a hand on Hux’s cheek, and Hux leaned into the touch. “I… I know I’m not Kylo Ren. I’m not big and strong and powerful. But… can I kiss you?” Hux raised both eyebrows at him.

“You thought I only liked you because you were Kylo Ren?” he asked. Ben shrugged. “Ben, I’ve had a crush on you for months. You, not Kylo Ren. You. Yes, you can kiss me.” Ben grinned and practically lunged himself at Hux, who yelped as he fell back onto his pillows. Their lips met and Hux kissed him back happily, running a hand through Ben’s hair. “You know,” Hux mumbled against Ben’s lips. “One thing that might be nice is if you grow out your hair like you had in the other world.” 

“Ugh, I know!” Ben groaned. “I want to so bad, but my mom wants me to keep it short.” Hux giggled.

“It’s alright for now, then, I suppose.” Hux sat up a bit to cough and Ben looked at him, concerned.

“Are you okay?”

“Fine, just my throat is a bit dry, that’s all.”

“Do you want some water?”

“Water would be lovely.” Hux smiled at Ben, who looked around and spotted a glass of water on a table a few feet away. He reached out a hand to summon it, but it didn’t budge. He blinked a few times and tried again. Still nothing. 

Hux frowned, confused as well.

“Let me try,” he said, stretching out an arm. Getting the same response as Ben, he tried harder. 

“Damn, that’s disappointing,” said Ben as Hux tried and failed to lift the cup. “I guess after all that, we can’t use the Force anymore.” Hux sighed in frustration.

“Oh well, at least I used it for what I really wanted to use it for,” he said, leaning back on the bed as Ben got up to get the water.

“Killing your father?” Ben asked as he placed the cup of water in Hux’s hand. Hux nodded before drinking the water. 

“It’s weird, though,” he said, placing the cup down on his bedside table. “I can still feel something.”

“Me too…” They looked at each other, and shared the same thought.

_ I feel connected to you. _

“Ben,” said Hux, quietly. “When we connected our energies, right before we came back…” He trailed off, but Ben heard the rest of his thought.  _ Do you think the connection stayed? _

_ Looks like it.  _ Ben smiled and Hux’s eyes widened. 

_ What, so you can just read my thoughts now?  _ Hux frowned.

_ And you can read mine.  _ Ben shrugged. Hux sighed.

“Well, I suppose there are worse things,” he said out loud.

“Yeah, but now you’re stuck with me,” Ben said, playfully nudging Hux, who rolled his eyes. “We’re connected through the Force.” 

Hux found Ben’s hand and laced their fingers together.

“I suppose our dreams will never truly end, will they?” he asked, a soft smile playing on his lips.

“Not as long as we’re together.”


End file.
